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WEST PnESBYTERIAN CHURCH, CARMINE-STREET, N. Y. 



FAMILIAR CONVERSATIONAL 

HISTORY 



OF THK 



EVANGELICAL CHURCHES 



OF 



NEW-YORK. 



NEW-YORK: 

ROBERT CARTER, 

58 Canal street. 



1S3S. 



c 



11.^ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 
1838, by the Author, in the Clerk's Office of the District 
Court of the Southern District of New-York. 



PRINTED BY 

W. B. & T. SMITH, 

8 3 DIVISION-ST. 



r 



TO THE 

RECTOR OF ST. THOMAS' CliORCH, KEW-YORK, 

THE HISTORIAN, SCHOLAR, AND DIVINE; 

THIS LITTLE VOLUME 

IS MOST RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED, 
BY HIS HUMBLE FRIEND, 

THE AUTHOR, 



;5^ 



U- 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 

Incidental History, 7 

The Morals of our City Predecessors, - - 49 

Colon'nil Slavery. — Negro Plot, - - - 70 

The Priuiitive Indian Inhabitants of our Inland, 79 

The Church in the Fort, - - - - 91 

The Reformed Dutch Church, ... 93 

The Episcopal Church, - - - - 109 

Tiie French Church, 130 

The Quakers, 133 

The Lutheran Church, ----- 145 

The Jews, 155 

The Presbyterian Church, - - - - 163 

The Moravians, 187 

The Baptists, 195 

The Methodists, 200 

The Refonnod Presbyterian Church, - - 214 
List of all the Churches in the City, alphabeti- 
cally arranged. . - - . - 217 



THE HISTORY 



OF THE 



CHURCHES OF NEW-YORK, 



CHAPTER FIRST. 

INCIDENTAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCHES, 
WHILE THE CITY WAS UNDER FOREIGN 
GOVERNORS. 

£ The Interlocutors are, an Uncle, and his two Nephews, 
Henry and John.] 

Uncle. Well, Henry, did j^oa make out to 
get a view of the ruins of the old church to-day, 
or was the appearance of things in Garden- 
street so altered by the fire, that you could hardly 
find your way*? 

Henri/. Oh no, sir; we succeeded in finding 
the object of our search, although the great fire 
has indeed made astonishing changes in that 
part of the city, John and I, after having gone 
around the whole ruins left of the fire, and 
clambering over one continued heap of rubbish, 
from South to Broad streets, at last found our- 
selves standing before the bare and blackened 
walls, of what so lately was the Garden-street 
1 



8 TIIECHURCHES 

Church. But, uncle, did I understand you, this 
morning, to say, that that was the spot where the 
first church ever buik in New-York city stood ? 

John. Perhaps you did, Henry ; but / under- 
stood uncle to make a distinction between the 
first churches built in this city. If I recollect 
aright, he said that the Garden-street Church 
V\-as the tJiird built within the precincts of the 
city, but the first one that was erected by the 
Aviil and contributions of the people, indepen- 
dently of the government. 

Uncle. You are right, John ; the govern- 
ment, very soon after, the settlement of the 
colony here, caused a chapel for divine worship, 
to be built within the walls of the fort; which 
you may note down as Xhe first church in New- 
York ; the second was built by Peter Stuy- 
vesant on his farm, or "Bowery" about the 
year 1660 ; and, then, not many years after this, 
the people procured a license to build a church 
in Garden-street, which you see was the third 
in the city. 

Henry. But was it called Garden-street along 
there in those early days 1 

Uncle. No. There was not much of a street 
there then, when the church was first built ; it 
was merely a lane on which the church stood, 
which ran up back of the parsonage-garden, 
where the minister lived, and from this came 
the name, in after days, of Garde?i-stveei. 

John. But you are not done, I hope, uncle? 



OF N E W - Y O R K . 



Have you nothing more to tell us concerning^ 
the history of this old and venerablt; church ? I 
should like to hear more too about all the early 
Christian churches in this city ; but perhaps 
your time may be too precious, and can be more 
profitably spent in other ways. 

Uncle. Oh no, my boys. Nothing can give 
me greater pleasure, than to hear you express 
the wish to learn somethino; concernincr the 

... 

early introduction of Christianity and its institu- 
tions into our city : and it will be a source of 
high gratification to myself, as well as some 
improvement to you, I hope, to sit down and 
talk over with you the early history of our city 
churches. And I am glad that your interest in 
the subject has led you to mention it ; but at the 
same time that I make known to you my sin- 
cere willingness to spend some portion of my 
time so profitably, as in conversations with you 
upon this interesting subject, I would remind 
you, beforehand, that it w'ill require consider- 
able patience, and will perhaps draw upon your 
fund of self-denial, to sit hour after hour, and 
perform what some people would call the 
drudgery of listening. 

Henry. It will be no drudgery to us, sir ; or 
at all events, a pleasant drudgery. Besides, we 
recollect to hear you say, sir, that nothing im- 
portant or useful, especially in the line of infor- 
mation or knowledge, can be obtained without 
much labour and study. 



10 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. You are right, and with such a dis- 
position, there is but little doubt that you will 
succeed in your attempts to acquire information 
on this subject, and gain the end you have in 
view : and if the same spirit follow you through 
life, I will venture to predict, that you will find 
all your undertakings, turning out to your 
pleasure and benefit, even to a degree far beyond 
anything you could anticipate. But as to the 
importance of the study upon which we propose 
to enter, I suppose that you have the same 
thoughts with myself, viz., that it is great, espe- 
cially to the young, and those engaged as 
scholars in Sabbath-schools, who, as they grow 
up, should become acquainted Avith, and be able 
to converse intelligently about the histories of the 
various Christian churches in the city. There 
is undoubtedly great ignorance on this pointy 
which is by no means confined to the young 
alone, but which may be found among people 
of all classes, both young and old, throughout 
the city ; which, indeed, is not so much to be 
wondered at, when we consider that the great 
mass of inhabitants that form the yearly increase 
to our population, are from the surrounding 
country, or other cities and towns, and conse- 
quently cannot be expected to be familiar with 
the history of churches or buildings, which they 
never saw or heard of from their parents, or 
other ancestors. I committed to paper, the other 
day, a few thoughts on this subject, which you, 
Henry, may read. 



OF NEW-YORK. 11 

Henry. " The remembrance of historical 
facts in relation to ecclesiastical institutions of 
our city is almost altogether confined to a few, 
comparatively, of our citizens, and these gene- 
rally far advanced in age, and fast hastening on 
to the end of life's journey, who have come to 
the knowledge of them by their own experience, 
and by tradition ; or else the events are recorded 
in books and precious manuscripts, locked up in 
safely-treasured libraries, seldom to be read by 
those who might profit by the perusal, and 
much less by the young, who are thus debarred 
from such important knowledge of earlier days. 
In this flourishing London of the West, the 
spirit of enterprise and innovation, utterly 
regardless of the veneration with which they 
used to be looked upon, with a ruthless hand, 
has swept away all traces of many of those 
venerable buildings, which were once the pride 
and honour of the honest and worthy colonists, 
who esteemed it one of their first and best of 
privileges to worship God, the God of their 
fathers, in churches of their own erection and 
consecration. Built by pious hands, and by the 
contributions of pious souls, and set apart to 
pious and devout purposes, they have been pull- 
ed down by men, ignorant or regardless of their 
history and design, as if no longer needed for 
use; or to make room for something of more 
modern style." 

Henry. This puts me in mind, sir, of the 
1* 



12 THECKURCHES 

Chateaux, in France, whose antiquated walls, 
built in feudal times, are now demolished to 
make w'ay for establishments of more modern 
taste and finish. But, as to churches, I had 
always supposed that age added to their sacred- 
ness in the eyes of the people universally, and 
secured the reverence and cherishing care of all. 

Uncle. This is true with regard to many, but 
not with all. There are many, who are not 
only actuated by a simple desire of change and 
novelty, but by a deep rooted prejudice against 
the simplicity of former times, to destroy every 
vestige of what they scornfully speak of as days 
of Puritanism. But, if you will read on, you 
will find that the churches of New-York have 
had a harder enemy than the hand of man to 
deal with — one more speedy in its operations, 
if not more destructive in its effects — I mean 
the raging element of fire ; which is so good a 
servant, but so cruel and terrible a master. 

Henry. " Thus many of the churches which 
stood conspicuously on our streets in the begin- 
ning of the present century, built before and 
after the revolutionary war, have disappeared. 
Nor has the spirit of innovation been alone and 
unassisted in this work ; the raging element 
jire, as if possessed by a determination to fall in 
with the spirit of the times, and erase every ves- 
tige of antiquity, has wrapped in its terrific 
embrace many a tall and beautiful spire, and 
left many a fine church with naught but naked 



OF NEW-YORK. 13 

walls to mark its identity; some of which, for 
many reasons, have never been rebuilt, and the 
congregations have located in other parts of the 
wide-spreading city." 

Uncle. Thus you see what agents have been 
mainly instrumental in removing from our 
sight, those venerable buildings, which the early 
inhabitants of the city used to delight to gaze 
upon, as temples dedicatedlo the worship of the 
Most High, and in which they were accustomed 
to meet week after week, for the offering up of 
public prayer and praise to the true and living 
God. But to preserve in your minds the re- 
membrance of the church buildings, will not be 
my only desire and object in these conversations 
with you; but that you may make such a 
record, in your minds, and on paper if you 
please, of the establishments and progress of the 
various denominations of Christians in our city, 
from its first settlement by the Dutch, down to 
the present time, as shall form an interesting 
history for your own review; and if committed 
to writing by you, might be made a useful and 
important present to some Sabbath-school li- 
brary. 

John. The proposition of committing our con- 
versations to writing, we will willingly and joy- 
fully accede to, uncle, provided that you give us 
more immediate assistance once in a while, 
should we need it. But to make our proposed 
history as complete as we can, will it not be 



14 THE CHURCHES 

necessary for you, sir, to give us some short 
account of the discovery and first settlement of 
New- York city'? 

Uncle. It will. And I will give you the 
account in as few words as possible; and there- 
fore begin by saying, what I presume you both 
already know, that the first discovery of the 
island, on which the great city of New- York 
now stands, was made by Henrj^ Hudson, in the 
latter part of the year 1609. He was an 
Englishman by birth, but was then in the 
employ of the Dutch East India Company. 
The object of the Dutch, in sending out Hudson, 
was to discover some more direct passage to the 
East Indies, than by doubling the Cape of Good 
Hope, in order to facilitate their trade. But, by 
his discoveries, finding that trade could be car- 
ried on to advantage with the Indians in 
America, they sent out other ships; and in 1614, 
encouraged a company of merchants in Holland 
to send out ships, and to establish trading-houses 
among the Indians, and licensed them under the 
name of the " West India Company."' Accord- 
ingly, this Company, in 1615, six years after 
the discovery by Hudson, erected their first 
fort and trading-house on the island where 
New- York now^ stands, and which was com- 
monly called Manhattan, as the Europeans 
pronounced the Indian name. 

Their object appears to have been that of trade 
entirely ; as they seemed to have had at first no 



*#« 



OF NEW-YORK, 15 

intention of making- permanent settlements and 
colonies here, as the English did at Plymouth 
and Jamestown. You doubtless recollect the 
circumstances and causes which led to the set- 
tlement of these first English colonies. 

Henry. Yes, sir. Especially that of Ply- 
mouth. We know that it was for the sake of 
religious liberty, that the Puritan fathers of New 
England forsook the homes of their nativ^e land, 
and fled to the wilds of America. And that 
causes then existed in England, which made it 
necessary for them, either to surrender the 
privilege of worshipping God after their own 
manner, and according to the dictates of their 
own conscience, or to seek a home in some 
other land ; they chose the latter. And conse- 
quently they fled to the shores of America. 

Uncle. You are right. But in Holland the 
state of things was different. There was no 
necessity there to flee the country, in order to 
obtain the privilege of religious freedom, and 
therefore, the only object that the first settlers in 
America from that country had in view, was 
merely that of trading with the natives. In 
return for beads and glittering trinkets, the In- 
dians could furnish them with abundance of furs 
and skins, valuable cargoes of which were con- 
tinually shipped to Holland ; as w^as also 
tobacco and copper. 

John. Tobacco! uncle. Did the Indians use 
tobacco ? 



16 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. Yes! You must know that our coun- 
try is the birthplace of this weed. The Indians 
were undoubtedly acquainted with the use of 
the tobacco-plant, long before the Europeans 
came among them, and smoking was an Indian 
custom. When Hudson's ship first appeared 
in New- York Bay, or perhaps before he had 
entered the Narrows, the natives came off to 
him, bringing with them abundance of tobacco, 
and red cppper pipes, which they used, and 
which th^y offered to the strangers as their 
best gifts. They also wore copper ornaments 
about their necks. But to return to our history, 
the whole possessions of the Dutch, which they 
claimed around Manhattan Island, and which 
extended many miles, north, south, and east, 
were called by them, New Netherlands, after a 
part of their country, in Europe. In the year 
1623, another and a stronger fort was built on 
the lower end of Manhattan Island, and called 
Fort Amsterdam. This stood on a high mound, 
a few rods below, or south-west of the present 
Bowling Green; and maybe considered as the 
commencement of the city, which took the same 
name as the fort, and was called New Amster- 
dam. From this time forward, we must look 
upon the settlement as a regular colony ; at first 
under the protection of the West India Com- 
pany, in Holland, who, in 1625, sent out Peter 
Minuit, as the first regular commander. 



OF NKW-YORK. 17 



CHAPTER SECOND. 

INCIDENTAL HISTORY CONTINUED. 

Uncle. Peter Minuit was commander from 
1625 to 1629, during- which time nothing oc- 
curred which would especially interest us in 
our researches ; or which would aid us in 
judging of his moral or Christian principles. 

Henry. But he built no church, sir? 

Uncle. No. But this might have been 
owing altogether to the small number of inhab- 
itants there, who could more easily and conve- 
niently assemble for divine worship in some 
apartment of the fort. This they were undoubt- 
edly in the habit of doing, considering that most 
of the first settlers were moral and Christian 
men, who had known and appreciated the value 
of Sabbath and sanctuary privileges in their na- 
tive country, and who would be likely to hail 
with joy the return of any stated period, more 
especially the holy Sabbath, that would remind 
them of the home from which they were now 
so far removed. There was no occasion, then, 
for a church in Governor Minuit's time — so in 
Van Tvviller's ; but it remained for William 
Kieft, who arrived here as Governor in 1638, 
to have the honour of erecting the^rs^ church 



18 THE CHURCHES 

for the public worship of God, ever built in 
New Amsterdam ; or otherwise New- York. 

John. We will remember his name, and note 
it also in our books. But, sir, will you be good, 
enouo-h to tell us where this first church stood? 

Uncle. I think that I have mentioned before 
to yoQ the chapel of the fort. This was the 
church built by the order of Governor Kieft, 
and it stood within the walls of fort Amsterdam, 
and was afterwards long known under the name 
of King's Chapel. Of its history we will 
speak more particularly hereafter. But from 
the erection of this chapel we may date the 
commencement of the ecclesiastical history of 
the city of New-York. From that time to the 
present, the citizens of New-York have never 
been without the possession of a church ; and 
perhaps no one Sabbath has passed by without 
the performance of public and divine worship, 
by the people of some one denomination or 
other. And this too, you will perceive, was a 
Protestant Church; the people orthodox in the 
faith and practice of the Reformed Church in 
Holland, and the congregation worshipping- 
after the manner of their Protestant fathers in 
Europe. The services, then, were conducted 
in the Dutch language altogether, which con- 
tinued to be used in the Dutch Reformed 
churches in the city down to the year 1764, 
when the English language was first intro- 
duced by the Rev. Dr. Laidlie, then pastor of 



OFNEW-YORK. 19 

the Middle Dutch Church. Of this change 
you will hear farther when we come to con- 
sider more particularly the history of the Dutch 
Clnirch. 

Henri/. We shoulcJ like to hear more con- 
cerning the native Indians, sir, whom the Dutch 
found here when they first arrived. 1'hey 
have all disappeared, and like the first churches 
of the settlers that you mentioned, no vestige of 
them remains to tell us w^hat they once were, 
or were they once lived and flourished. But 
you have access to some history of them, 
we presume, and we v»'ou]d beg the privilege 
of gaining more information concerning this 
branch of the almost exterminated race of the 
red man. 

Uncle. I am glad to hear you speak so feel- 
ingly of the red men. They were noble sons 
of nature — an extraordinary race — notwith- 
standing they were called "dogs" by the white 
man, and by him treated with brutish cruelty. 
I have many things to say to you about the 
aborigines of this island, the Manhattans, as 
they were commonly called, which I defer for 
the present, with the promise that before long 
we will devote a whole conversation exclu- 
sively to this interesting subject. 

But before we proceed to the particular his- 
tory of the churches separately, perhaps it vvill 
be vvell for us to take a general suivey of the 
circumstances relative to Christianity, which 
2 



20 THECHURCHES 

took place in the colony under the different 
governors, and the state in which the churches 
then were. To do this, we will be obliged lo 
introduce more or less of the secular history of 
the colony ; w^hich, nevertheless, may be inter- 
esting to you. We have seen that Governor 
Keift had the honour of building the first 
church in New Amsterdam, in the year 1643. 
He appears to have been quite an enterprising 
man, and encouraged the inhabitants to build 
houses without the fort, and thus to extend the 
city ; but as to his moral and religious charac- 
ter, we have little or no means of judging; ex- 
cepting that his erecting a church for the public 
worship of God, argues much in his favour. 
But the last, and by far the most celebrated of 
the Dutch governors, was Peter Stuyvesant. 

Henry. Oh ! yes, sir, we remember the name 
of the brave Petrus Stuyvesant. 

Uncle. His name is indeed worthy of remem- 
brance. He began his administration May 
27th, 1647, and governed the affairs of the colo- 
ny until September, 1664, when he was obliged 
to surrender his power to the English; who, 
headed by Colonel Richard Nicolls, were too 
strong for him. But he was nevertheless, as 
you say, a brave man and a good soldier, and 
was unwilling to submit, for a long time. But 
at length, compelled by the entreaties of his 
own subjects, he reluctantly yielded to the Eng- 
lish, and signed the articles of capitulation on 



OF N EW-YOIIK. 21 

e 10th of September, 1664. But his siirren- 
iev was made on terms very honourable to him- 
self, and extremely favourable to the inhabi- 
tants. These articles were signed at his farm, 
or Bowery, as the Dutch name for farm was 
pronounced by the citizens. And that you 
may see that the g-overnor was not forgetful of 
the blessing's and privileges of religious free- 
dom, as well as civil and personal liberty, I 
have copied off one or two of those articles of 
capitulation, which you, John, may read. 

John. "All people shall still continue free 
denizens, and shall enjoy their lands, houses, 
and goods, wheresoever they are, within this 
counter, and dispose of them as they please. 

"The Dutch here, shall enjoy the libTeriy of 
their conscience in divine worship, and church 
discipline. 

" No Dutchman here, or Dutch ship here, 
shall upon any occasion be pressed to serve in 
war against any nation whatsoever." 

Uncle. You see how strictly they guarded 
their religious freedom ; and to these articles 
they ever after, until the great American revo- 
lution, referred as the great charter of their 
liberties. Colonel Nicholls was now governor, 
and one of his first acts was to change the name 
of the city from New Amsterdam to that of 
New-York, in honour of the Duke of York, 
who held the patent right of the province. 

Joh.n. But what became of Governor Stuy- 
vesant, sir, after this ? 



22 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. I was just about to tell you, that after 
the surrender of the city, he retired to his coun- 
try seat, 01 Bowery, until the next year, which 
was 16G5, when he paid a visit to Holland, his 
old home and native country. But returning 
before the close of the year, he again retired to 
his Bowery, and there enjoyed his estate for 
many years. At his death, his remains were 
interred in a sniall chapel, which he had 
erected upon his own lands and which stood 
near where the St. Mark's Church now stands, 
in Tenth-street, and where the tombstone, 
recording his name, age, death, &c., still marks 
the spot. 

John. I recollect to have seen his tombstone 
there, but had no idea of there being a church 
so far out of town, in his day. Was this the 
second one, sir? 

Uncle. Yes. His chapel must have been the 
second church ever built on Manhattan Island; 
and it argues much in his favour, that he was 
at the trouble and expense of building a church 
for himself and his family: which as we learn, 
comprised a large number of domestics. One 
word about his character. He was an honour- 
able man, a "food soldier, a faithful sfovernor, 
and a firm Protestant; and has left a fame, 
which his posterity, who are still amongst us, 
are proud to own. With regard to his per- 
sonal piety, or his vital religion, we are not 
able to know much at this late day, but must 



OF NEW- YORK. 23 

content ourselves with hoping- for the best, and 
judging with that Christian charity, which, as 
the apostle Paul declares, never faileth, but 
•' hopethall things." 

Henry. I should like to know, sir, what 
clergymen were in our city so early as that, 
and who could have officiated in Governor 
Stuyvesant's chapel ? 

il/icle. Concerning the latter question, I may 
fail to satisfy your curiosity entirely ; but think 
myself not far out of the way in supposing that 
the clergymen of the church of the fort might 
have given him frequent help, especially one of 
the most active of them, the Rev. Mr. Megapo- 
lensis. 

Joh7i. Megapolensis ! what a singular name? 

Uncle. Yes, it is a singular name indeed to 
us, and he must have been a man of siyigular 
goodness too. But of this you will learn more 
hereafter, when vve come to speak of the Dutch 
Church, and its ministers. 

Governor Nicolls was a sagacious man, and 
saw the propriety of allowing the inhabitants 
all their ancient rights and privileges, both civil 
and religious, that were not incompatible with 
their relation to the King of England. And he 
not only saw, but had the good sense toacknow-' 
ledge the loyalty of the Dutch inhabitants, and 
their firm attachment to the Protestant relio-ion. 
Consequently, in most of his public acts, he 
manifested a deference and respect to the former 
2* 



24 TIIECHURCHES 

habits and customs of the colonists. Religious 
liberty to worship God, after the dictates of their 
own conscience, was w'hat they valued most 
highly, and in this he was equal to their wishes. 
In flicl this was one of the conditions of settlement 
in the colony, which he offered as an inducement 
to new planters ; which one of you may read to 
us, as published 1664. 

John. " In all territories of his Royal High- 
ness, liberty of conscience is allowed ; provided 
such liberty is not converted to licentiousness, or 
the disturbance of others in the exercise of the 
Protestant religion.'"' 

Uncle. Neither did Governor NicoUs forget 
that the people must have ministers ; and to 
avoid all difficulties respecting the collections 
for their support, we find him making the fol- 
lowing regulation, which we may denominate 
a prudent one, considering the state of the times 
then. It ran in these words: — " Every township 
is obligedto pay their minister, according to 
such agreement as they shall make with him, 
and no man to refuse his proportion ; the minis- 
ter being elected by the major part of the house- 
holders, inhabitants of the town." 

Henry But, uncle, as Governor Nicolls was 
an Eno-lishman, I suppose he meant this to apply 
to clergymen of the Established Church of 
Enoland, did he not ?- 

Uncle. No. The people could choose a min- 
ister of what denomination they pleased. The 



OF NEW-YORK. 25 

connection of Church and State, recognized in 
the British Constitution, was considered as con- 
fined to England proper, and not extending to 
the American colonies, although some of the 
governors made some attempts to enforce it here. 
Not so with Governor NicolJs. In 16G5 we 
find him authorizing the mayor and aldermen 
to raise " 1,200 guilders" for the support of the 
Dutch ministers in the city. But the law of 
license was strictly adhered to by him. No 
clergyman could perform a marriage ceremony 
without a license from the Governor, or his 
Council. Even schoolmasters could not teach 
without a license. And there is a record of the 
sexton's of the Dutch church at Albany, apply- 
ing to the Governor and Council,for the permis- 
sion to bury "Lutherans and all"' in his burying 
ground ; which, of course Vv'as granted. About 
this time also, a Lutheran clergyman, by the 
name of Fabricius, being accused of disturbing 
the peace by preachino; his peculiar sentiments, 
was in consequence publicty reprim-anded by 
the governor. I only mention such things, as 
matters of fact, to show you how great a change 
time has wrought in the state of things since 
then. 

John. As great a change in the feelings and 
habits of the people, I should think, sir, as there 
has been in the old buildings which you spoke of 

Uncle. You are right. But of the two, I 
think I should have much preferred encroach* 



26 THE C H U R C II E s 

ments upon the former than upon the latter ; 
for we enjoy a fuller blaze of Christian light 
than they did, and consequently are able to 
carry out to greater perfection the doctrine, espe- 
cially, of freedom of conscience, and of human 
and individual rights. But to return ; days of 
public fasting, humiliation, and prayer, were of 
quite frequent occurrence under almost all the 
governors. On particular occasions the gov- 
ernor would issue his proclamation, which was 
ever met by the acquiescence of the people ; and 
which they always manifested by closing their 
stores, stopping all business for the day, and 
attending in a body upon the public worship of 
God. We find frequent mention of such occa- 
sions in the records of the city; and they never 
failed to be devoutly observed by the inhabit- 
ants. The Christian virtue of charity, too, was 
always prominent, and flourishing, among the 
colonists. Almshouses were erected in the city 
very early, and the poor were so humanely 
taken care of, that there were few or no beggars 
to be found here. This was often spoken of by 
strangers. There were many different sects 
and denominations of Christians as early as the 
year 1740; but few of them supported regular 
ministers. The Reformed Dutch or Indepen- 
dents, as they were called, and the Presbyte- 
rians, were considered the richest, and were the 
most numerous. The governors, for the most 
part, favoured the Episcopal form of worship, 
but this was not the case with all exclusively. 



OF NEVv^-YORK. 



CHAPTER THIRD. 

INCIDENTAL HISTORY CONTINUED. 

John. Were all the governors Protestants, 
uncle? 

Uncle. Yes, with one or two exceptions, they 
were. Sir Thomas Don2:an, however, who 
succeeded Sir Edmund Andross as governor, 
was a professed Papist, though he was a man 
of such integrity and moderation, that he has 
always been classed among the best of govern- 
ors. He was the first governor that suffered 
the people to have a " General Assembly" in 
the province; to which they might send repre- 
sentatives of their own election, who could have 
a voice in all the proceedings of the govern- 
ment. In the same year of his arrival here, 
the assembly of representatives which he had 
allowed to the people-, and which, together with 
himself, constituted the governmpnt, passed an 
act concerning marriages, as follows: which 
may not be uninteresting to you, as showing 
what once obtained here as the law of-the land, 
though it has long since been abrogated. 
"Banns of marriagps to be published in the 
church, on the Lord's day; or when there is 
no church, they are to be advertised on the door 



28 THECHURCHES 

of the house of the constable of the town, where 
the parties reside ; or else a license to be pro- 
cured from the governor," 

Unlike his popish master across the waters, 
King James II., Governor Dongan appears to 
have been as little big-oted in religion as he was 
tyrannical in politics. In the same year men- 
tioned above, he seems to have acquiesced cor- 
dially in another act of the Assembly, relating 
to the institutions of Christianity, a part of which 
runs as follows: "All persons professing faith 
in God by Jesus Christ, to have free and full 
liberty, unmolested, to exercise the mode of 
worship agreeable to them, provided they do 
not disturb the good elsewhere." This shows 
him either to have been no bigot in his own re- 
ligion, or that no opportunity for the avowal of 
his real principles, was given him, by the con- 
stancy of the people in their's. From his re- 
fusing to obey the command of his popish mon- 
arch, for the encouragement of the French 
Jesuits among the Indians, as vvell as from his 
uniform conduct during his continuance in the 
province, charity and the love of truth would 
lead us to avow the former opinion. 

Henry. I suppose there must have been some 
Roman Catholics in the colony at this time, 
sir. 

Uncle. Yes; their first settlement here, how- 
ever, was made while Sir Thomas Dongan was 
Governor of the Province. James II., then King 



OF NEW- YORK. 29 

of England, whom you have already seen was 
a Papist, and whom some historians have called 
the "Priest-ridden Prince," naturally enough 
encouraged settlers of his own faith and per- 
suasion. At this time too, many of the king's 
servants in the colony openly acknowledged 
themselves to be Papists; which gave great and 
serious alarm to the old inhabitants, who were 
particularly averse to anything like an approxi- 
mation to Popery, and enthusiastically attached 
to Protestantism. The collector of the revenues 
and several of the principal officers were among 
the number that openly avouched the religious 
tenets of the king ; and a teacher in a newly- 
established Latin school being strongly suspected 
of Jesuitism, the apprehensions of the people 
were very much increased. By these and 
many other circumstances, a general dissatisfac- 
tion arose among the people, which carried them 
to a high pitch of excitement. And daily ex- 
pecting to hear of the accession of a new Pro- 
testant sovereign to the throne of England, some 
of them, led on by a man named Leisler, forcibly 
wrested the government from the hands of the 
Lieut. Governor, whom Sir Thomas Dongan 
had left in charge. In Leisler's public declara- 
tion to the people of his intentions, and the rea- 
sons of his apparent revolt, he says that what he 
did was for "the protection and preservation of 
the Protestant religion." 

John. He must have been a zealous Protes- 
tant, as well as a firm patriot ; was he not, uncle? 



30 THECHURCHES 

Uncle. That he was zealous in both of these 
characters, there can be no doubt; but it might 
have been better for himself, as well as for the 
cause which he so openly espoused, had he 
moderated his zeal a little, and delayed his opera- 
tions for a few days at least; for he had no 
sooner dispossessed the Lieut. Governor of his 
authority, than the important news arrived, that 
"William and Mary" were actually on the 
throne, as Protestant sovereigns. This change, 
while it ultimately proved the ruin of Leisler, 
totally delivered the inhabitants fiom all their 
fear of Popery, and frio^htful apprehensions of 
Romish influence in the colony. And when the 
nev/ sovereigns were officially proclaimed, and 
publicly acknowledged by the colonists, a " pub- 
lic and solemn thanksgiving to Almighty God" 
was made: and a day set apart for the purpose 
by the people. An ordinance made and pro- 
claimed in the Province, about this time, may 
give you some idea of the estimation in which 
our forefathers here held the Christian institution 
of the Sabbath. It bears date of the year 1683, 
and is in these words, as found in the records of 
the city, which you, Henry, may read to us. 

Henry. " Ordered, that no youths, maydes, 
or other persons may meet together on the Lord's 
day, for sport or play, under a fine of one shil- 
ling for each offence ; and that no public houses 
may keep open, or give entertainment on that 
da)% except to strangers, under a fine often shil- 
lings." 



O F N E W - Y R K . 81 

Uncle. There was a similar law passed a 
few years previous to this, in 1670, while Col. 
Francis Lovelace was governor, by which a 
fine of " twenty guilders" was imposed for each 
offence of Sabbath breaking. It is from such 
evidences as these, which we find scattered up 
and down on the pages of their records, that we 
judge of the Christian character of our Dutch 
progenitors, and early predecessors in the city, 
who lived so near the times of the Reformation 
as to have partaken much of its spirit ; and who 
seem to have appreciated in some degree, at least, 
the truth of that inspired sentiment, that righte- 
ousness alone exaheth a nation, but sin is a re- 
proach to any people. 

But to return to our history. With the acces- 
sion of new monarchsto the throne of England, 
the people had all their grounds for the fear of 
papal influence removed. But, as you will 
see, they could not congratulate themselves 
much upon the change, in the colony, when 
they found themselves under the dominion of 
Col. Benjamin Fletcher, who arrived here as 
Governor in 1692. 

John. Why; was he not a good Protestant, 
sir? 

Uncle. O yes, he was a Protestant, good and 
true, as far as this part of his creed went; but 
all his actions were influenced by, and tinctured 
with his excessive biootry in favour of the es- 
tablished Church of England. At first he pos- 
3 



32 THECHURCHES 

sessed a good share of popularity, but this ex- 
treme devotedness to the Episcopal form of wor- 
ship and church government, exhibiting itself 
on every occasion, finally rendered him so 
odious that he became quite intolerable to the 
old inhabitants. As the Dutch inhabitants 
formed the great majority in the province, al- 
most all the governors had practised the en- 
couraging of English preachers and school- 
masters in the colony, as good policy. Among 
the foremost in this project was Governor 
Fletcher. We find him, accordingly, on his 
first arrival, recommending this matter to the 
assembly ; who, from their firm attachment to 
the Dutch language, and their devotedness to 
the forms of the Church of Holland, the prac- 
tice of which you will remember, was secured 
to them by one of the articles of the surrender 
in 1664, wereextremely averse to his proposals. 
This opposition on the part of the House of 
Assembly, called forth a warm rebuke from the 
Governor, in his speech at the close of the ses- 
sion ; which has been handed down to us, and 
which John, for our information, may read. 

John. "Gentlemen : the first thing that I re- 
commended to you at our last meeting, was to 
provide for a ministry, and nothing is done in 
it. There are none of you but what are big 
with the privileges of Englishmen and Magna 
Charta, which is your right; and the same law 
doth provide for the religion of the Church of 



OF NEW- YORK. 33 

England, against Sabbath -breaking and all other 
profanity ; but as you have postponed the sub- 
ject this session, I hope you will begin with it 
the next meeting, and do somewhat towards it 
effectually." 

Uncle. As might be expected, the old inhabit- 
ants w'ere not very prompt in complying wnth 
all his requisitions in regard to ecclesiastical af- 
fairs. He wished to establish a ministry of the 
Church of England in the colony by law, and 
to make an annual tax upon the people for its 
support. — This would have been introducing 
what, Henry? 

Henry. Something like the church system in 
England, I suppose. Sir. 

UnrJe. Yes ; it would undoubtedly have led 
to that ultimately, had the Governor been al- 
lowed to have his own way in the matter. And 
to anything that savoured of such an end, the 
people, of course, were very bitterly opposed. 
They were sincere lovers of the Dutch Church; 
and remembered, too, the right that was con- 
ceded to them at the time of the surrender, to 
worship God in their own way, and according 
to the dictates of their own consciences. But 
the sectarian zeal of the Governor was not to 
be abated by any opposition. Accordingly we 
find him, at the next meeting of the Assembly, 
addressing them in the following words : " I re- 
commended to the former Assembly the settling 
of an able ministry, that the worship of God 



34 THE CHURCHES 

may be observed among- us, for 1 find that great 
and first duty very much neglected. Let us not 
forgfet that there is a God who made us, and who 
will protect us if we serve him. This has been 
always the first thing I have recommended to 
you, yet the last in your consideration. 1 hope 
you are all satisfied of the great necessity and 
duty that lies upon you to do this, as you expect 
His blessing upon your labours." 

Henry. Certainly, he must have been a good 
man, sir. 

Uncle. I am pleased to see you so willing to 
extend the hand of Christian charity to your 
neighbour. But you will have to learn, my 
boy, as you journey on through the world, this 
important lesson, that there is a great and radical 
difference, in the conduct of men, between pre- 
cept and practice ; much more between true 
piety and the semblance of it. The words of 
this bigoted sectarist were fair and good, but 
we are constrained to say, that he exhibited no 
corresponding actions. He cast severe reflec- 
tions upon the existing and prevailing mode of 
worship among the people, and wished to es- 
tablish an " able ministry ;" by which you must 
understand, a ministry of the Church of England. 
And what was more material, he wished to have 
the power of settling clergymen over the several 
churches left with himself alone. Both of 
which requisitions the Assembly of course re- 
fused to grant ; yet, nevertheless, finally passed 



OF NEW-YORK. 35 

an act to establish a permanent and regular 
ministry in the colony, not to be of any particu- 
lar or favourite denomination, and to provide for 
its support. 

John. Then one of Governor Fletcher's 
crimes was that of being- an ardent supporter of 
the Church of England in the colony? 

Uncle. Not at all, John. By a mistake on 
this point, you would do as much injury to the 
one party as you imagine to be suffered by the 
other. His ardency as an Episcopalian would 
not have been at all obnoxious to the people, 
had it not merged into bigotry. Had he come 
to them in the kind conciliatory spirit of the 
gospel, that spirit of Christian charity, forbear- 
ance, and brotherly love, which they were so 
willing at first to exercise towards him, no rup- 
ture would have been experienced between 
them. But as it was, an hierarchy was his sole 
object. And he was violently enraged, when 
he found that the power of inducting any in- 
cumbent he pleased into the parochial duties, 
was not granted to him by the Assembly ; and 
declared to them that he had power from the 
King and Glueen to depose or suspend any mi- 
nister he pleased; that whilst he staid in the 
government, he should take care that neither 
heresy, sedition, schism, or rebellion be preach- 
ed, nor vice or profanity encouraged ; and that 
he should endeavour to lead a virtuous and 
3* 



36 THE CHURCHES 

pious life amongst them, and to give them a 
good example. His boastings with regard to 
his own private character would have been 
passed by entirely, or lightly answered by the 
people, had they been but true. But when 
they saw, and experienced too, the violence of 
his temper, the extreme rudeness of his manner 
towards themselves, and his excessive avarice, 
and eagerness for acquiring wealth, with all 
possible extension of their Christian charity, 
they could not avoid the conclusion, that his 
apparent zeal for the welfare of religion, was 
nothing more than a bigoted partiality to the 
English Church, aided by a strong desire to 
increase his own personal wealth, by the exten- 
sion of his individual influence. The worst 
feature in his hierarchical proceedings, was his 
direct intention to introduce, by his own exam- 
ple, the papal custom of selling benefices, as 
practised in England and elsewhere. 

Henry. But, sir, did not the Assembly vir- 
tually side with him, by passing their act for 
the support of a permanent ministry? 

Uncle. Not at all. This act by no means 
favoured the Episcopal church exclusively. 
This was an error into which many others be- 
sides the Governor fell. And to refute this 
opinion of exclusive right being granted to one 
church, which, indeed, prevailed pretty general- 
ly at first among the people, a petition upon the 
subject was sent from five of the church-wardens 



OF NEW-YORK. 37 

and vestrymen of the city, to the Assembly, 
which met in April, 1695, praying to have the 
decision of the Assembly on the point in dis- 
pute, which was finally given in the following 
words, which John may read; by which we 
shall see, as I told you before, that the Assem- 
blymen, unlike their Governor, were not in- 
fluenced by sectarianism. 

John. " Ordered, that the vestrymen have 
power to call a disse tiling PrrAestarot minister ; 
and that he is to be paid and maintained as the 
law directs." But Governor Fletcher's zeal 
was the means of some good, was it not, sir? 

Uncle, Yes, there you are right, John. We 
will not withhold from him his due on this 
point. His exertions occasioned the building 
o(\\\Q first Episcopal church in the city of New- 
York. This, you will doubtless remember, 
was what we now call the Trinity Church, 
built in 169G, on the same site which it now 
occupies, at the head of Wall-street, in Broad- 
way ; and whose lofty spire has stood for so 
many years, towering to the skies. But its par- 
ticular history we will consider hereafter. 



38 THE CHURCHES 



CHAPTER FOURTH. 

INCIDENTAL HISTORY CONTINUED, 

John. But the people were not long harassed 
by the presence of their tyrannical governor, I 
hope, sir. 

Uncle. No, Governor Fletcher remained, 
to oppress them, only two or three years after 
his violent attack upon their religious liberties. 
In 1695, they had the pleasure of seeing Him 
bid a final adieu to the post of honour which 
he had held in the colon^^ and of welcoming in. 
his stead, Richard, earl of Bellamont, who ar- 
rived in 1697. 'i he name of this cfovernor I 
mention to you, only on accomit of a memora- 
ble law passed by the Assembly during his ad- 
miuistration ; and one at which you would 
doubtless be unable to conceal your unmingled 
astonishment, were you to remahi ignorant of 
the circumstances which led to its passage. It 
was a law with no less an import than the hang- 
ing of evcrypopuh priest that came voluntarily 
hoto the colony. I wish you to note the date of 
its passage, which was the year 1700. 

Henry. We will remember it, sir, it was just 
one hundred and thirty-eight j^-earsago, I think. 
But it is quite startling to me, who never dream- 
ed of such a law before. 



C F N E \V - Y O R K . 39 

Uncle. Such a law, made by the highest au- 
thority of the land, would be astounding indeed 
to us, who li^'e in a day when the turrets and 
spires of Roman Catholic chapels and cathe- 
drals are seen on every side, mingled with 
those of Protestant churches of every denomi- 
nation ; and who are daily accustomed to see 
Papist and Protestant, irrespectively of creed, 
associated in the common business and walks 
of life, and living happily together, under the 
same flag, as the ensign of their political union. 
But all this wonder is removed when we carry 
back our researches to the time of its enact- 
ment, and examine the circumstances of the 
colony, which called for such, apparently so 
harsh, a legislation. You must picture to your- 
selves, boys, the existence, in this then western, 
wilderness, of two great rival powers, the French 
and the English, ever, and violently, contend- 
ing for the supremacy. The former possessing 
a strong foothold in the north, or the Canadas, 
and the latter planting her colonies all over the 
more southern portions of the country, now 
known as the New Enofland and Middle states. 
You must also keep in your memory, the exist- 
ence of large and powerful tribes of tractable, 
yet ferocious Indians, on the borders of these 
provinces, who were extrem'^ly susceptible of 
European influence to bias them one way or 
ihe other; and in whose power lay the ques- 
tion of the existence and perpetuity of those set* 



40 T H E C n U R C II E s 

tlements that had gone out as pioneers into the 
wilderness — which couid be exterminated at a 
blow by those red sons of the forest — savages 
who could prove such good and faithful allies, 
but such terrible and insatiable e?iemies. — You 
must then cast your glance up to the northern 
portions of the province of New- York, and the 
borders of Canada, and see those hordes of 
popish priests, and Jesuitical emissaries of the 
pope, sent by the French, wending their way 
through the trackless forest to the wigwams of 
the unsuspecting Indians, and laden with a sup- 
ply of " iire-water" for their introductory epis- 
tle, and with an abundance of arms and ammu- 
nition, as vouchers of their sincerity, engaging 
them to carry their hostile expeditions south, 
and to take up the tomahawk and scalping 
knife against the English settlers wherever 
they could be found unprotected ; encouraging 
them to break up English settlements, sparing 
neither age nor sex among their victims, but 
burning their houses with fire, and involv- 
ing them in one general overwhelming ruin. 
All this you must consider, and the wonder 
vanishes. Is it not so ? 

Henry. It is, uncle. But then you would 
have us consider this as a political, rather than 
a religious movement, on the part of Lord Bella- 
mont and the Assembly ? 

Uncle. Yes, I would so; considering it mere- 
ly in the light of a legislative act. But it is not 



OF NEW-YORK. 41 

at all likely that the Governor and the Assem- 
bly, in legislating against the priests as their 
political enemies and treacherous fjes, lost sight 
of the hidiousness of that system, as a religion, 
which could foster such merciless agents of 
barbarity, and smile upon such horrid and cold- 
blooded cruelties. Indeed, as you will see by 
referring to the history of your state, it was 
,many long years after this before the members 
of the Assembly could bring themselves to relax 
their rigour against the disciples of the pope, 
and blot from their memories those dreadful 
scenes that had been acted on our northern bor- 
ders, under their supervision. 

John. We will admit this act of the Assem- 
bly of 1700 to a prominent place in our eccle- 
siastical record, sir, notwithstanding you have 
pronounced it to have been mainly a political 
movement. And what else, sir, shall we re- 
cord of Lord Bellamont's government? 

Uncle. I have nothing more that would espe- 
cially interest you, to say concerning- him ; but 
I will mention to you, and wish you to remem- 
ber, the name of his successor, Lord C^r^bury. 
The name of this man, we will have frequent 
occasion to use in speaking of the origin and 
Establishment of Presbyterianism in this city, as 
he formed quite a conspicuous figure in the 
history of that church. Therefore I would have 
vou remember also the date of his dominion in 
the province, which was from 1702 to 1708. 



42 THE CHURCHES 

Henry. We have it, sir. But, was he a 
great friend to the Presbyterians ? 

Uncle. Oh, no. He was a great and bitter 
enemy. And an avowed and open enemy not 
only to this, but to every other denomination in 
the colony, the Episcopalian excepted. And to 
this latter also, as to its real interest and final 
prosperity, the event proved him to be, instead 
of a friend, a virtual and effective enemy. For 
such was his bigotry as a sectarist, and his anti- 
christian severity, and, oftentimes, excessive 
cruelty, vv-hich he exhibited towards those of 
other denominations, that the church which he 
cherished finally came to be regarded as an 
enemy to the liberties of the people; which 
stain required the total reorganization of the 
church, after ihe revolution, to wipe away. 

Joh7i. What were some of his cruelties, sir ? 

Uncle. There is a long list of them, I assure 
you, as you will find when we come to discuss 
the subject of his conduct towards the Presby- 
terians ; but at present I will mention only a 
few, as showing you many of the difficulties 
which rosQ upas impediments in the pathway of 
our forefathers, and with which they had to 
struggle long and earnestly in securing to them- 
selves, and to their children after them, the 
tlessed privileges of Christian liberty and reli- 
gious toleration. The Presbyterians were not 
alone the subjects of Lord Cornbury's violent 
and bitter disposition. Against all non-Episco- 



OF NEW-YORK. 43 

paiians, who were called by the general, but 
inappropriate, name of dissenters, were the 
shafts of his unchristianlike severity directed. 
All denominations, therefore, were alike fearful 
of his relig-ious rage, and experienced, more or 
less, the effects of his animosity. He even car- 
ried his highhanded measures so far, as to fre- 
quently dispute the right of the Dutch, to call 
and settle ministers over their own churches; 
and this directly- in the face of the privileges 
granted to them by the articles of the surrender. 
And he required also, in all cases, a license 
from himself before a schoolmaster could be pro- 
cured by the people ! 

Henry. Is it possible ! I can scarcely believe 
these things to have taken place in New-York, 
uncle. But what a happy circumstance it was, 
that good old Governor Stuyvesant procured 
those stipulations for the "liberty of their con- 
sciences in divine worship and church disci- 
pline," when he surrendered the city to the 
gl ish. 

Uncle. It was indeed a happy, and what some 
would call a fortunate circumstance. But let us 
consider it not only thus, but as a highly provi- 
dential event, that he was enabled, by the condi- 
tion in which the English found him, to require 
of his victor the agreement to articles so favour- 
able to himself and subjects. And for these, the 
Dutch inhabitants of New-York had reason to 
bless the name of their valorous governor to 
4 



i 

I 

44 THECHURCHES j 

their latest day. That article especially, relating I 
to their religious liberties, part of which you ' 
quoted, Henry, was a "magna charta" to them, 
to which they looked, at all times, as the source 
and defence of their liberties. This sheltered 
them from the imposition of a tyrannical eccle- 
siastical establishment, and was the motto of the 
standard around which they rallied for protec- ; 
tion. The virtue of these capitulatory articles ^ 
the monarchs of England fully understood, and • 
they, therefore, never assumed such incon- 
sistency of character and tyranny in action, as, ' 
against justice, to force the practice of the forms ' 
and modes of the English Church upon the ; 
inhabitants of the province of New-York. But i 
you may rest assured, that to this intent, ] 
they did as much as they could, consist- , 
ently with their relations to the colonists. | 
They sent out clergymen of the English ! 
Church, to officiate wherever they could, among | 
the people ; gave licenses for teaching in the I 
colony, to members of the English Church, and \ 
gave great inducement to the several governors 
to be zealous in the work of making proselytes. ! 
This was their common practice. But to Lord 
Cornbury, special instructions were given, re- , 
quiring him to " give all countenance and en- ; 
couragement to the exercise of the ecclesiastical ; 
jurisdiction of the Bishop of London, as far as , 
conveniently might be, in the province: — that ' 
no schoolmaster be henceforward permitted to j 



OF NEW-YORK. 45 

come from this kingdom, and to keep school in. 
that our said province, without the license of the 
said Lord Bishop of London, <SuC." 

John. The Bishop of London, uncle ? What 
had he to do with the colonies ? 

UficU. Well asked, John. It would have 
been better had you been here a hundred and 
thirty years ago to ask Lord Cornbury that 
question. He would have confined you ia 
prison, or set you as a gazing stock in the pil- 
lory, it is likely; but that would not have vilified 
your sagacity. Lord Cornbury probably never 
had that question whispered in his ear. — But 
had he stopped a moment himself to consider it, 
there were doubtless those in the colony, at that 
day, who could have told him, that, though the 
Bishop of London is "My Lord'' in England, 
and enjoys princely power, yet the bounds of his 
jurisdiction, rightfully and constitutionally end 
with those of South Britain. But to answer 
your question more directly ; the Bishop of 
London appears to have had much to do with 
the province. He considered the colony as a 
part of his diocese ; and held a supervisory care 
over all the Episcopal clergymen ihatcame into 
it ; whom he considered as nothing more thaa 
missionaries, subject to his control. 

Henry. Missionaries, sir, as long ago as that? 

Uncle. Oh yes, and much to their praise, a 
Missionary >Socie^?/, too. At the time of which we 
are, speaking, there was a "society for the propa- 



46 THECHURCHES ; 

i 

gation of the gospel in foreign parts" existing- ' 
in England, engaged continually in sending , 
out missionaries among the Indians, and all • 
through the province; some of whom were ' 
eminent for their piety, and devotion to the wel- , 
fare of the Indians : among whom Mr. Barclay, ; 
so long a missionary to the Mohawks, and after- ■ 
wards rector of Trinity Church, shines con- , 
spicuously. In 1736, this society had sixteen ; 
missionaries in the province of New-York; and - 
in 1750, they had fifty-nine missionaries settled 
as rectors or otherwise, scattered throughout ' 
the different colonies. It was undoubtedly 
proper that these missionaries should have been i 
somewhat under his direction and care, and sub- 
ject, in some degree, to his control ; but other- , 
wise his powers as a Diocesan could not, justly, ] 
have extended to the province. But justice was i 
what his devoted servant, Lord Cornbury, never | 
seems to have devoted a thought to ; or if it ; 
ever appeared in his actions, it came in as an 
exception, while injustice was the rule. His i 
conduct not only set the religious commuliity i 
against him, but greatly increased the number 1 
of his political enemies. So much did the \ 
knowledge of his malign disposition towards ] 
the "dissenters" awaken the jealousy of the 
people, in regard to his civil government, that 
his every act underwent the closest scrutiny. 
And it being impossible for him to make the 
smallest digression unnoticed, his lordship daily 



OF NEW-YORK. 47 

lost favour in the eyes of the people. They 
appealed to the Assembly; and the Assembly 
were all against the governor. Petitions from 
all quarters were sent to England for his 
removal, and finally this oppressive, hard-heart- 
ed governor, was deposed. 

John. I hope, sir, that the people had a better 
governor in his successor. 

Uncle. Here your hope may be realized, 
John. We will have no more such bigoted 
governors to deal with, in our conversations on 
this part of the history. Almost all his succes- 
sors Vv'ere mild and worthy men ; but as we 
shall have occasion to speak of them again, in 
connection with the early history of several of 
the churches in the city, we will pass them over 
for the present, and mention only one or two. 
One of these is Governor Cosby, who was here 
in 1733; unlike Lord Cornbury, he appears to 
have been lenient in his treatment of the non- 
Episcopalians. It appears that he had granted 
a charter of incorporation to a church in Sche- 
nectady, by which their privileges were very 
materially increased. Upon the occasion of 
their presenting him thanks for the charter, he, 
in return, addressed them in these words, which 
we may use as somewhat of a test of his spirit, 
and which you, John, may read from this New 
York Gazette, of 1734. 

John. " Gentlemen ; I shall always think 
myself happy when I have an opportunity to 
4* 



48 THECKURCHES 

forward so g"Ood a work as encouraging" of 
piety and religion in this province ; and I shall 
upon all occasions, be ready to promote what- 
soever may tend to the good of His Majesty's 
subjects under my government/' 

Uncle. The other one I wish to mention is 
Governor Clarke ; who was in the province, 
you will recollect, daring the time of the famous 
"Negro Plot," of which, as it forms quite a 
chapter in our histor}^ I will converse with 
you more fully hereafter. It is for another 
reason that I mention him now. In looking 
over the N. Y. Gazette of 1736, the only public 
paper then printed in the city, you will find 
Governor Clarke's proclamation, specifying in- 
structions received by him from England in re- 
gard to certain forms of prayer for the royal 
family, in which he was required to have the 
same "published in the several parish churches, 
and other places of divine worship within the 
said province." This might, at lirst sight, ap- 
pear like a reviving of the old spirit of intole- 
rance, so conspicuous under Fletcher's and 
Cornbury's administrations. But we must, I 
think, put a milder construction upon it, and 
view it in the light rather of a state than a 
church movement. The attempt to settle an 
ecclesiastical establishment in the colony had 
failed as often as tried ; and the Dutch churches 
were now secure in the enjoyment of their 
charters of incorporation. This, too, was vir- 



OF NEW- YORK. 49 

tually acknowledged in the proclamation. 
Therefore I would rather have you consider the 
Queen Regent as looliing upon the colonists as 
subjects merely, and she their sovereign, 
issuing this edict as she would any other 
for the welfare of the royal family; as applica- 
ble to all, indiscriminately, without any regard 
to sect or creed. A more rigid construction of 
such an edict on this subject, would encloud us 
with inconsistencies and confusion. 

This will end our conversation, boys, for to 
day. When we meet again, we will talk over, 
more leisurely, the habits, customs, and morals 
of our city predecessors. 



CHAPTER FIFTH. 

THE MORALS OF OUR CITY PREDECESSORS. 

John. Well, uncle, I believe you promised 
us, when we met again, something concerning 
the customs, morals, and especially the religious 
character of the old inhabitants of the city and 
province. Did you not, sir? 

Uncle. Yes. I did so. I have not forgotten 
my promise; and I think it will be an interest- 
ing exercise for us, to discuss somewhat at large, 



50 THECHURCHES 

the morals of the citizens generally, before 
we proceed to the particular history of the 
churches. This, though it may sometimes 
require a slight exercise of our patience, 
will 3^et richly repay us for all our atten- 
tion ; as it is of the first importance that 
we should form some accurate notions of 
the state of morals, and religious feelings, 
among those whose secular history, as being 
the founders and supporters of our goodly city, 
is so highly interesting to us. We wish to 
know what sense to apply to the term, when we 
hear them spoken of as our " Christian ances- 
tors," or " our pious forefathers." These points, 
you will find have been slightly touched by 
some of the historians of the state. But what I 
wish to discuss with you now, we will glean 
directly from such old manuscripts and preserved 
newspapers of the day, as we can find ; which 
are the purest sources of such information, and 
from whose subject-matter, unshackled by the 
judgments cf others, we can draw our own in- 
ferences, and make our own final conclusions. 
Here, as you see, is the regular file of a news- 
paper, dating back as far as the year 1730; 
which, as it is still printed, has been published 
in this city, under the name of the " New-York 
Gazette," for more than a hundred years. In 
this, therefore, we will search for our informa- 
tion. 

Henry. But was it a religious newspaper, sir? 



OF NEW-YORK. 51 

Uncle. No ; not as we understand that term ; 
that is, exclusively religious : for, then, the peo- 
ple knew of no such distinction between the pa- 
pers. It was merely a public print for the cir- 
culation of foreign and domestic news in the pro- 
vince ; but, I am happy to say, it generally bore 
a' decidedly religious character. For, then, al- 
though there was for a long while but this one 
paper in the province, and it published only 
weekly, yet there never was such a rage for 
commercial and political news as to require the 
exclusion of religious topics from its columns, 
to which a large part of the paper was frequent- 
ly devoted. This might have been owing in 
some degree, though by no means in all, to the 
smallness of the place, and the extremely dimin- 
utive commercial operations of the colonists, 
compared with those of the present day. 

John. The shipping business from this port 
was not very extensive then, I presume. 

Uncle. You are perfectly safe in such a sup- 
position, John : as you will easily perceive by 
noticing this paper of 1731, which has in it but 
one advertisement of a packet vessel, and that a 
mere sloop, bound for Boston. Little more than 
a hundred years ago, the arrival of a sloop or 
a periauger from the eastward, or from Albany, 
was an event that never failed to excite due no- 
tice from the people ; while the appearance of 
a merchant ship, or a man of war, standing up 
the bay, was quite an era in the day-history of 



52 THE CHURCHES i 

the metropolis. Where now you can see well- ' 
built wharves, surrounded by an almost endless i 
forest of ship-masts, there was then little else \ 
than an irregular, winding shore, with here and 
there, perhaps, made fast to a stake or drawn up 
high on the sand, a small fishing-smack, or a | 
tottling shallop. The day of steamboats and ' 
railroads had not yet arrived. The period of i 
such improvements in every department of the I 
arts and sciences as we now see and enjoy, was ; 
to them far away in the unknown future. Every : 
thing moved at a slower rate than at present, i 
What we are accustomed to call a "trip" to | 
Albany, and perform in a few hours, they used ; 
to denominate a " voyage" which frequently ; 
took them almost as many days. In short, the j 
change which the lapse of time has wrought, is , 
conspicuous in every thing about our growing ■ 
city ; except in the winds and the tides, which ' 
now blow upon it with the same velocity, and i 
wash the shores of our island with the same re- \ 
gularity as before. But to return from our ! 
digression. If our researches tend to establish I 
the religious character of the public papers, we i 
shall advance not a little in our knowledge of 
the religious character of the people who sus- 
tained them. This mode of inference we will ^ 
consider as a safe one, until we see the purse of 
an oppressive government sustaining that from | 
which the people have withdrawn their support, j 
Before such a crisis, this test of the public ! 



OF NEW-YORK. 53 

morals is a good one. And when we find, in the 
public business papers of the day, whole columns 
devoted to religious subjects, essays on doctrinal 
points in theology, exhortations to practical 
piety or eulogiums on the Christian scheme ; 
when we see conspicuous notices of the preach- 
ing enjoyed on the Lord's day in the churches, 
comments on the sermon, and frequent quota- 
tions of the texts in full ; reflections upon the 
state of the public affairs in the province, apply- 
ing the words of inspiration suitable to the 
occasions, for the instruction, reproof and ad- 
monition of the people ; frequent acknowledge- 
ments of dependence upon God, as the Supreme 
Ruler of the universe, for every blessing, civil, 
religious and social ; we may justly conclude 
that such were acceptable to the readers, and 
found favour with the community at large. 
These happy features which our public prints 
display so little of in these days of greater 
rejineme'fit, were quite prominent then, when 
our forefathers were not too wise to read from 
their weekly paper, as well as from the ever- 
lasting book of nature continually spread open 
before them, and acknowledge too, that " Thou 
God rulest." If any raging fire which threat- 
ened destruction to life or property, was sud- 
denly arrested in its desolating course by the 
exertions of the surrounding inhabitants, it was 
publicly attributed to the "blessing," "mercy," 
or " providence" of God attending their labours. 



54 THE CHURCHES 

Were any wasting pestilence or other threaten- 
ing evils, by any means whatever averted from 
the city, or from families ; or a drowning man 
resc-ued by the timely assistance of his neigh- 
bours ; the public papers would record, that 
"By a good Providence," or "under God," 
such and such means were successful. Or, 
were the colonists enlisted in a war with their 
insatiable enemies on the north, the French and 
the Indians, and their valour suddenly crowned 
their arms with success ; in the people's paper 
you would read, " The great Director of human 
affairs, and Preserver of mankind," hath smiled 
upon our struggle, and given us a victory over, 
our barbarous foes. Such as these are what I 
mean when I speak of the evidences of the reli- 
gious character of the public papers. Nor are 
they few or scarce. You will find them scat- 
tered throughout almost every number of these 
early prints ; affording us good consolation on 
the question of the state of religious feelings in 
the community then. 

Htnry. But, sir, the subjects might have 
gotten this custom from their king, who always 
in such state proclaimed himself to be, '• Bf 
the Grace of God, King of Great Britain, 
France, and Ireland," &c. 

Uncle. True, this might have been the case. 
But if so, we have full reason to believe that 
they so far improved upon the example, as to 
drop the form upon occasions when their feel- 



OF NEW-YORK. 55 

ings were not an echo to the spirit of the words. 
But let the precedent have been what it might, 
the simple fact is all that I would press upon 
your attention. The same happy feature also 
we find in the character of the public documents 
of most of the governors, such as their messages 
to the assembly, proclamations to the people, 
&c., in which they acknowledge, in form and 
appearance at least, the hand of an overruling 
Providence, and the manifold blessings conse- 
quent upon it as purchased for us through the 
merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour, even in rela- 
tion to events of minor national importance. 
Their weekly prims, for "dailies" belong to a 
much later date, teem with evidences of the 
orthodoxy of the people in the faith and practice 
of the reformed Protestant churches. 

These, as if in obedience to the will of the peo- 
ple, were considered always open as a medium 
for the circulation of religious as well as com- 
mercial and political news. The state of the 
churches form a source of much observation, 
and you will find frequent notices concerning 
them. 

John. Notices of the clergymen, too, I sup- 
pose. 

Uncle. Yes, and of their preaching. Espe- 
cially the leaders of any particular sect, or gen- 
eral reformers in religion, were mentioned. 
And of these latter, Whitfield, in particular, was 
the subject of much remark. Of him we find 
5 



5G THE CHURCHES 

frequent and favourable notices in the Nevv-- 
York papers. 

Henry. Oh, sir, he was a man of such celeb- 
rity, that it was impossible for him to be passed 
over in forgetfulness. His fame was spread 
abroad throughout all the colonies, and end- 
less crowds of listeners wherever he went, 
well attested the fact of his popularity : did 
they not, sir? 

tliic'e. Yes, to a great degree your remarks 
are true; and 1 am sorry to cast the least shade 
upon the brightness of your retrospect, But 
necessity would have you remember, that the 
lapse of time has not worn away the truth of 
the assertion, " a prophet is not without 
honour, save in his own country, and among 
his own kin" — which is as true and applicable 
to the present as to the day of our Saviour's 
utterance of it. 

When a prophet is in our midst, w^e are 
apt to disparage his abilities, and to under- 
rate his claims upon our attention and obedience, 
and to judge him with harsh judgment, and to 
"stone him to death;" but when he is gone, 
and the clods of the valley cover him, and two 
or three generations intervene, the character of 
his labours begin to assume its proper place in 
the affections of his successors ; and his popu- 
larity too, if I may so speak, increases, and 
they begin to appreciate the worth of such a 



OF NEW-YORK. 57 

man, and to "build the tomb of the prophet." 
So it was in some measure with the great Whit- 
field. You have heard so much of his great- 
ness and popularity, that no wonder you were 
ignorant of the fact that for a long time he ap- 
peared as one man struggling against a mighty 
phalanx of enemies. He was surrounded with 
enemies, and of these there were not a f no who 
would have wrested from him, even the last re- 
fuge of an unfortunate man, his honest]/. 

Henri/. George Whitfield had such bitter 
enemies!" I hope not in New- York, sir. 

Uncle. It V\'as in reference to this point alone, 
that I mention his name to you at all ; only as 
he is connected with the ecclesiastical history of 
the city. Besides the ordinary modes, we have 
one other sure way of judging concerning his 
reception here; that is, by the tone of the pub- 
lic papers of the da}^ And we will find our 
examination on this point to be encouraging^ 
and strongly in favour of your expressed hope, 
Henry. We know that his enemies brought 
heavy accusations against him, but we know 
also that they were unjust, malicious, and alto- 
gether unfounded in truth. Many false reports, 
and some printed articles, highly injurious to 
his character, had been widely circulated in the 
difl^erent parts of the country, and did him much 
mischief But of the public opinion concern- 
ing Mr. Whitfield, in New- York, I think we 
can arrive at more satisfactory conclusions. 



58 THE CHURCHES 

And with this view I have copied from the 
New- York Post Boy (which was the same as 
the New-York Gazette) of April, 1746, which 
had quite an extensive circulation in the sur- 
rounding countrj^ the following- extract ; which 
undoubtedly did much to remove lingering pre- 
judices among the people, and thus to help on 
that great cause of righteousness, for the ad- 
vancement of which all Whitfield's -toils and 
labours were endured, and all his strenMh and 
life spent. You may read it, John. 

John. " Mr. Whitfield's excellent parts, fine 
elocution, and masterly address ; his admirable 
talent of opening the Scriptures, and enforcing 
the most weighty subjects upon the conscience ; 
his polite and serious behaviour ; his unaffected 
and superior piety ; his prudence, humility, and 
catholic spirit, are things which must silence 
and disarm prejudice itself By these qualifi- 
cations of the orator, the divine, and the Chris- 
tian, he has not only fixed himself deeper in the 
affections of his former friends, but greatly in- 
creased the number wherever he has preached; 
and made his way into the hearts of several 
who, till this visit, had said all the severe things 
against him that enmity itself seemed capable of." 
Uncle. This paper noticed also, from one to 
another, the place of his preaching — his arrival 
in the city — his departure from it, destination, 
&c. 
John. But I should like very much to know, 



OF NEW-y ORK. 59 

sir, whereabouts in this city, the great Whit- 
field used to preach. I think I should gaze 
with interest upon the spot, after what I have 
heard. I suppose he must sometimes have re- 
sorted to the streets and fields 1 

Uncle. He did in many instances. We 
find very frequent mention made of his preach- 
ing in the open fields in the neighbouring 
country around. The old City Exchange, 
which stood at the foot of Broad-street, near 
Water-street, and which was built on large 
arches, was a favourite place for itinerant preach- 
ers, Here Whitfield might probably at times 
have held forth. But as to other places, we 
have more certain knowledge than probabilities. 
During his first visit to New-York, say from 
1745 to 1660, he generally preached in the 
Presbyterian Church in Wall-street, which was 
then the only Presbyterian Church in the city. 
And afterwards, a few years before his death, 
he was heard to preach in the Brick Church, 
in Beekman-street ; which was, then, familiarly 
called the "Brick Meeting," and in common 
parlance, said to be " in the fields;" so little was 
the city extended in 1767. 

Henry. I shall gaze upon the Brick Church, 
with more pleasure and reverence than for- 
merly, when I recollect that within those 
walls the great Whitfield preached. But you 
spoke of his death, sir. Will you tell us when 
that event happened ? 
5* 



GO THi: CHURCHES 

Uncle. I think it was in the year 1770. He 
died and was buried at Newburyport, Mass. 
The particulars of this event you can read in 
his memoirs. I have an anecdote concerning 
this great and good man to tell you, which 
took its rise in this city ; but which I will re- 
serve until we meet again. 



CHAPTER SIXTH. 

MORALS OF OUR CITY PREDECESSORS CON- 
TINUED. 

Henry. Now, sir, we are ready for the pro- 
mised anecdote. 

Uncle. Well, you shall have it. And T relate 
the circumstance to you as nothing new or 
strange, nor as untold before, but as deriving 
its special interest to us, merely from the fact 
of its having taken place in this city. 

It was on, the occasion of his preaching 
before the seamen of the city; and the in- 
troduction of the following bold apostrophe into 
his sermon, vi'as the circumstance I alluded to : — . 
" Well, my boys, we have a cloudless sky, and 
are making fine headway over a smooth sea, 



r • 



O F N E W - Y O R K . 61 

before a light breeze, and we shall soon lose 
sight of land. But what means this sudden 
lowering of the heavens, and that dark cloud 
arising from beneath the western horizon? 
Hark! Don'tyou hearthedistant thunder? Don't 
you see those flashes of lightning? There is a 
storm gathering ! Every man to his duty ! 
How the waves rise and dash against the ship ! 
The air is dark ! The tempest rages ! Our masts 
are gone! What next?" The misuspecting tars, 
reminded of former perils on the deep, as if 
struck by the power of magic, arose, and with 
united voices exclaimed, " Take to the long- 
boat !" 

How such an opportunity of impressing di- 
vine truth upon the mind of his hearers was in 
this case improved by him, is not for me to say ; 
but enough so, undoubtedly, to show such oppor- 
tunities were sufficiently valued by him who 
had sufficient abilities to produce them. Mr. 
Whitfield's preaching was very efiectual in 
this city, as well as elsewhere, in the con- 
version of multitudes to the cause of Christ, 
the Redeemer. So blessed were his labours 
here, that it was found necessary immediately 
to enlarge the Presbyterian Church in Wall- 
street, by the erection of galleries in it; and a 
year or two after, they were again obliged to 
enlarge it nearly one third, to accommodate the 
stated worshippers. 

John. But were the governors favourably 
disposed towards Mr. Whitfield, sir ? 



62 T H E C II U R C H E S 

Uncle. To this we will not seek a direct and 
positive answer. But there is little hazard in 
supposing that they gave him no very great en- 
couragement; although, being a regular priest 
in the established Church of, England, they 
could not well restrain him, as they might pos- 
sibly have done, or attempted to do so, had he 
appeared here without the canonical robes. 
We find them generally to have been strictly 
sectarian, and sometimes bigoted in their 
attachment to the Church of England; where- 
in, you know, Whitfield difiered very ma- 
terially from them. He was no sectarist; 
he knew no church but Christ's ; no standard 
of doctrine but the Bible ; no banner but of the 
cross. And when he preached to the listening 
multitudes that followed him in New York city, 
and elsewhere, he preached to them, not as an 
Episcopalian, but as a Christian merely, carry- 
ing the messages of his great Master with faith- 
fulness to his gnilty fellow-mortals, without re- 
gard to name or sect. This feature in his preach- 
ing was well illustrated on one occasion, by 
himself, which has come down to us as a matter 
of history. Do you remember the anecdote I 
refer to, Henry? 

Jo/ui. I should like very much to hear it, sir, 
Henry. 1 think it was this. W^hen Mr. 
Whitfield was one day preaching in Market- 
street, Philadelphia, from the balcony of the 
Court-house, he cried out, "Father Abraham, 



OF NEW- YORK. 63 

who have you in heaven? any Episcopalians?" 
"No!" "any Presbyterians? any Baptists?" 
" No !" " Have you any Methodists, Seceders, 
or Independents there?" "No! No!" "Why, 
who have you there ?" " We don't know those 
names here, All that are here are Christians — 
believers in Christ — men who have overcome 
by the blood of the Lamb, and the word of his 
testimony." " O, is this the case ? then God 
help me. God help us all to forget party 
names, and to become Christians, indeed and in 
truth." 

Uncle. It would be well for the world, were 
all professing Christians, in this respect, his dis- 
ciples. And it might have been better for our 
city, perhaps, had the governors generally been 
more friendly to all evangelical sects, without 
distinction. But this is leading us away ; our 
business is with ficts, and not with surmises of 
what might, or would have been the state of the 
churches here, had the circumstances been dif- 
ferent. What we should do, is, to mark with 
attention the course pursued by our predeces- 
sors, and in imitating them, avoid only their 
faults. 

John. But we should be glad to see that the 
governors generally seemed to take so great an 
interest in the success and prosperity of the 
"English Church," and, through its instru- 
mentality, the success of religion and morality 
in the city and the province. 



64 THECHURCHES 

Uncle. We shonld. And they gave the 
best evidence of their interest in the matter, and 
the best encouragement to the people for erect- 
ing churches that they could give; viz. their 
personal attendance upon occasions of the dedi- 
cation of <:burches to the service of the triune 
God. We find frequent notices of the govern- 
ors' attendance, with their families, upon such 
occasions. This was customarily practiced by 
them. But their care, however, was not always 
€xclusively confined to the Episcopal Church. 
Governor Montgomerie, with some others, is 
an instance to the contrary. The churches, 
then, had also a prtjctice of greeting, in their 
character as distinct bodies, the newly arrived 
governors, when they first appeared here; 
which gradually passed into a regular custom. 
We see notices of it, more or less, down from 
the time of Lieutenant-Governor De Lancy, in 
1758. The several churches, represented by 
their clergymen, elders, and deacons, would 
wait upon the governor in due form, to pay 
their respects, and to wish him peace and pros- 
perity, and to invoke the blessings of heaven 
upon his person and government. This they 
gave as their best boon, and offered as the besi 
evidence of their loyalty as subjects, and their 
benevolence as Christians. 

Henry. I suppose that there were no theatres 
m the city, in those days, sir; when the public 
papers bore such marks of morality? 



OF NEW- YORK. 65 

Uncle. No ! Your surmise is correct. A 
theatre was an almost unheard of thing in this 
city, in the middle of the last century. The first 
notice that I have found in the public prints, of 
such an institution, was in a paper of the year 
1754 ; in which a "new theatre, in Nassau- 
street," was advertised, and where two actors, 
only, appeared on the stage. As no other notice 
appears for some time, it was probably only 
once in a long while ; or, what was more pro- 
bably the case, the preparations were merely 
temporary. It was not till towards the begin- 
ning of the revolutionary war, that there came 
to be a regularly established theatre in the city. 
— Then we have a record of two, called the 
"old," and the "new;" one in John-street, near 
Broadway; and the other in Beekman-street, 
then known as Chapel-street, on account of " St. 
George's Chapel," built there in 1755. 

John. Only two! and those small ones, I 
presume, sir. But now, what a list of them we 
have. There is 

Henry. Pray do not enumerate them, John. 
It is enough to know the number of these 
schools of vice, and moral corruption, in our 
city. We can only mourn over the change 
in the public taste, v/ith regard to these 
matters. Uncle looked in vain for the re- 
petition of a scanty notice of a theatre play, 
in a public business paper, published in 
this city seventy-four years ago ; and now 



66 THE CHURCHES 

oiir most widely circulated daily papers, arc 
filled with regular notices of these institutions, 
which are so numerous. 

Uncle. Your abhorrence of theatres is just. — 
They have been cried upas "schools of morals;" 
but that cry has long since ceased to breathe in 
the atmosphere of truth and sincerity. It has 
now become an idle tale, to talk of the morality 
of theatres. Instead of being schools of virtue 
and morality, they are eminently those of vice 
and irreligion; and a worse place of evening 
resort for the young can hardly be imagined to 
have an existence in our enlightened city. And 
it is a happy feature in their history, that our 
city predecessors, in years gone by, had domes- 
tic ties and social joys enough, to bind them to 
their happy homes, without seeking such vain 
enjoyments. Their joyous fire-side was their 
only stage, and in the cheerful circle themselves 
were the actors ; and for ha])pinrss, they needed 
not to resort to the crowded ball, or to the theatre, 
overflowing with the giddy, pleasure-seeking 
multitud(^ And we can confidently express the 
opinion, that their religious scruples would have 
prevented their attendance, had such institutions 
then had an existence within the bounds of their 
goodly city. 

John. This is very satisfactory, sir. The 
account you have given us, speaks well for the 
moral and religious character of the former 
inhabitants of the city. 



OF NEW-YORK. 67 

Henry. But this is only the bright side of the 
picture, I suppose. And there are, undoubtedly, 
thing's, that could be told us, which would casta 
deep shade upon the brighmess of the view. 

Uncle. You are quite right, Henry. If 
we find their excellencies in some things, we can 
also see their failings in others. But you ap- 
pear to have already received some information 
on this subject; and I will thank you to men- 
tion some things wherein you remember them 
to have come short of the standard of the present 
day ; or in other words, those which we now 
look upon as blemishes in their moral character. 

Henry. If I have been informed aright, they 
had public lotteries, which were patronized by 
all classes of society; intemperance was rife in 
the land; and, lastly, the blot oi slavery sullies 
their reputation. 

Uncle. Yes, these charges cannot be denied; 
they stand out prominently upon the pages of 
their history. But if Ave fail to wipe away en- 
tirely the stain, let us endeavour, by a know- 
ledge of the attendant circumstances, to mitigate 
the rigour of our judgment. Public lotteries, 
though now prohibited by the law of the state, 
were much in vogue here eighty or a hundred 
years ago ; and not only here, but in all the 
cities and provinces of his Britannic majesty, on 
this side of the Atlantic ; and in England too. 
They were employed, by the government of 
this and other provinces, in raising money for 
6 



68 THE CHURCHES 

the public expenses, such as paying and sus- 
taining armies, erecting public buildings, for 
charitable or other purposes, and for providing 
forts and military stations on the frontiers. 
Columbia College in this city, then, and for 
many years, called " King's College," was 
founded by the means of the avails of a pub- 
lic lottery. They were in common use also 
in Connecticut, and even in New-Haven, the 
palladium of Connecticut's religion and mo- 
rality. There is still extant, a printed scheme 
of a lottery originated for the purpose of build- 
ing a public wharf in that city. Whether this 
was the famous " long wharf," or some ante- 
rior one, you may reserve as a matter of inqui- 
ry. You see by this, how extensively they 
were in use. But it docs not appear, that the 
people were, then, at all aware of the pernicious 
tendencies of the system upon the community at 
large. This was a lesson of sad experience, 
which the lapse of time alone could teach them. 
We, however, find a law, early enforced, for- 
bidding the use of private lotteries. And al- 
though this system of immorality existed long 
in our city, yet it is a matter of praise to the 
great Ruler of the universe, in whose hands is 
" the heart of the king," that a sound and health- 
ful legislation has at length swept it all away. 

John. Intemperance, sir, is the second 
charge. 

Uncle. But this is a charge which lies 



OF NEW-YORK. 69 

equally at the door of all, for many generations 
back. Not that they favoured or countenanced 
intemperance, but that they were, universally, 
temperate drinkers, and the creaturS, alcohol, 
was in common use. You will find frequent 
mention in the old papers, of the joyous occa- 
sions in this city, at the birth-day celebrations 
of the king-, princes, dukes, &c. On these oc- 
casions, the governor, mayor, aldermen, and 
chief men of the city, after the regular morning 
service in the Trinity Church, were accustomed 
to assemble at the fort, and spend the remainder 
of the day in drinking bumpers to the health of 
" His Majesty," &c. While the people with- 
out, amply supplied with the same, or coarser 
stimulants, kept up the scene. Here was the 
great mistake of our predecessors; they were 
unacquainted with the only touchstone of safety, 
iotal abstinence. 

Henri/. This we can the more readily pass 
over, seeing we were all, so lately, in the same 
condemnation. 

Uncle. But they were not altogether blinded 
to the desolating effects of strong drink, though 
they failed of reaching the true ground of safe- 
ty. We find the assembly of Nov. 1750, pass- 
ing an act to restrain tavern-keepers and inn- 
holders, from selling strong liquors to servants, 
and apprentices; and from giving large credit 
to any. Thus we see that they had, at least, 
some suspicions of the mojister. 



70 THE CHURCHES 

John. Then, lastly, comes slavery, sir. 
Uncle. Yes, and this is the most painful sub- 
ject of all, boys; still we must meet it. But, 
as the cortsideration of the subject will require 
more of our time than we can at present spare, 
we will defer it till we meet again ; when I 
will present you with a short account of slavery 
as it once existed in the city and province of 
New York. 



CHAPTER SEVENTH. 

COLONIAL SLAVERY. NEGRO PLOT. 

Henry. Slavery, sir, is the last serious charge 
I have to bring against the Christian character 
of our city predecessors. And it is a point on 
which Ave are especially desirous of receiving 
information, such as we are confident that you 
can give us. We would like to gather some- 
thing of its history here, sir. 

Uncle. It is, indeed, a heavy charge, boys, to 
bring against any people or nation. And in 
giving you some historical data of its origin 
and existence here, I must necessarily relate 
many things that were consequent upon its 
existence, which darken rather than brighten 



OF NEW -YORK. 71 

the view we have already taken. AUhoiigh 
this moraJ blot no longer sullies our reputation 
as a state, and the rising generation seem 
scarcely to be conscious of the fact, yet the time 
has not long been passed when all the horrors 
and evils, both physical and moral, of such a 
system of cruelty and oppression, were rife in 
the midst of us. Consequently, when we advert 
to some startling tales of fact, we will advert to 
them as the legitimate fruits of the existence of 
slavery, and blame our predecessors rather for 
the system than for the fruits of it. You would 
be surprised, in looking over the old newspa- 
pers of that day, to see the numerous evidences 
of the existence of that dreadful system that 
abound there. Look, for instance, into this par 
per, of the year 1730, and read. 

John. New- York Gazette, September 21st, 
1730. " To be sold at Benjamin D'Harrette's 
house, one negro man, named Scipio, a cooper, 
about 22 years old; and one ditto, named Mus- 
ter, a house-carpenter and ploughman, and fit 
for country work, about 26 years old.'' 

Henry. Another, sir. October 12th, 1730. 
"To be sold on reasonable terms, a likely negro 
girl, about 18 years of age — a likely negro boy, 
about 16 years of age — both born in this city. 
They can speak good English and Dutch, and 
are bred up to all sorts of housework. And 
also, a new negro man. Inquire at the Post 
Office, New York." 
6* 



62 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. To this we will not seek a direct and 
positive answer. But there is little hazard in 
supposing that the^^gave him no very great en- 
couragement; although, being a regular priest 
in the established Church of England, they 
could not well restrain him, as they might pos- 
sibljrhave done, or attempted to do so, had he 
appeared here without the canonical robes. 
We find them generally to have been strictly 
sectarian, and sometimes bigoted in their 
attachment to the Church of England; where- 
in, you know, Whitfield differed very ma- 
terially from them. He was no sectarist ; 
he knew no church but Christ's ; no standard 
of doctrine but the Bible ; no banner but of the 
cross. And when he preached to the listening 
multitudes that followed him in New York city, 
and elsewhere, he preached to them, not as an 
JEpiseo'palian, but as a Christian merely, carry- 
ing the messages of his great Master with faith- 
fulness to his guilty fellow-mortals, without re- 
gard to name or sect. This feature in his preach- 
ing was well illustrated on one occasion, by 
himself, which has come down to us as a matter 
of history. Do you remember the anecdote I 
refer to, Henry 7 

John. I should like very much to hear it, sir. 

Henry. 1 think it was this. When Mr. 
Whitfield was one day preaching in Market- 
street, Philadelphia, from the balcony of the 
Court-house, he cried out, "Father Abraham, 



OF NEW-YORK. 63 

who have you in heaven? any Episcopalians?" 
"No!"' " any Presbyterians ? any Baptists?" 
" No !" " Have you any Methodists, Seceders, 
or Independents there?" "No! No!" "Why, 
who have you there ?" " We don't know those 
names here, All that are here are Christians — 
believers in Christ — men w4io have overcome 
by the blood of the Lamb, and the word of his 
testimony." " O, is this the case? then God 
help me. God help us all to forget party 
names, and to become Christians, indeed and in 
truth." 

Uncle. It Vv'ould be w^ell for the world, were 
all professing Christians, in this respect, his dis- 
ciples. And it might have been better for our 
city, perhaps, had the governors generally been 
more friendly to all evangelical sects, w'ithout 
distinction. But this is leading us away ; our 
business is with facts, and not with surmises of 
what might, or would have been the state of the 
churches here, had the circumstances been dif- 
ferent. What we should do, is, to mark with 
attention the course pursued by our predeces- 
sors, and in imitating them, avoid only their 
faults. 

John. But we should be glad to see that the 
governors generally seemed to take so great an 
interest in the success and prosperity of the 
"English Church," and, through its instru- 
mentality, the success of religion and morality 
in the city and the province. 



^4 THECHURCHES 

Uncle. We should. And they gave the 
best evidence of their interest in the matter, and 
the best encouragement to the people for erect- 
ing churches that they could give; viz. their 
personal attendance upon occasions of the dedi- 
cation of <2hurches to the service of the triune 
God. We find fi'equent notices of the govern- 
ors' attendance, with their families, upon such 
occasions. This was customarily practiced by 
them. But their care, however, was not always 
exclusively confined to the Episcopal Church. 
Governor Montgomerie, with some others, is 
an instance to the contrary. The churches, 
then, had also a practice of greeting, in their 
character as distinct bodies, the newly arrived 
governors, when they first appeared here; 
which gradually p)assed into a regular custom. 
We see notices of it, more or less, down from 
the time of Lieutenant-Governor De Lancy, in 
1758. The several churches, represented by 
their clergymen, elders, and deacons, would 
wait upon the governor in due form, to pay 
their respects, and to wish him peace and pros- 
perity, and to invoke the blessings of heaven 
upon his person and government. This they 
gave as their best boon, and offered as the besi 
evidence of their loyalty as subjects, and theii 
benevolence as Christians. 

Henry. I suppose that there were no theatres 
in the city, in those days, sir; when the public 
papers bore such marks of morality? 



O F N £ W - Y O R K . 65 

Uncle. No ! Your surmise is correct. A 
theatre was an almost unheard of thing in this 
city, in the middle of the last century. The first 
notice that I have found in the public prints, of 
such an institution, was in a paper of the year 
1754 ; in which a "new theatre, in Nassau- 
street," was advertised, and where two actors, 
only, appeared on the stage. As no other notice 
appears for some time, it was probably only 
once in a long while ; or, what w^as more pro- 
bably the case, the preparations were merely 
temporary. It was not till towards the begin- 
ning of the revolutionary war, that there came 
to be a regularly established theatre in the city. 
— Then we have a record of two, called the 
" old," and the " new ;" one in John-street, near 
Broadway ; and the other in Beekman-slreet, 
then known as Chapel-street, on account of " St. 
George's Chapel," built there in 1755. 

John. Only two! and those small ones, I 
presume, sir. But now, what a list of them we 
have. There is 

Henry. Pray do not enumerate them, John. 
It is enough to know the number of these 
schools of vice, and moral corruption, in our 
city. "We can only mourn over the change 
in the public taste, v/ith regard to these 
matters. Uncle looked in vain for the re- 
petition of a scanty notice of a theatre play, 
in a public business paper, published in 
this city seventy-four years ago ; and now 



66 THE CHURCHES 

our most widely circulated daily papers, are 
filled with regular notices of these institutions, 
which are so numerous. 

Uncle. Your abhorrence of theatres is just. — 
They have been cried up as "schools of morals;" 
but that cry has long since ceased to breathe in 
the atmosphere of truth and sincerity. It has 
now become an idle tale, to talk of the morality 
of theatres. Instead of being schools of virtue 
and morality, they are eminently those of vice 
and irreligion; and a worse place of evening 
resort for the young can hardly be imagined to 
have an existence in our enlightened city. And 
it is a happy feature in their history, that our 
city predecessors, in years gone by, had domes- 
tic ties and social joys enough, to bind them to 
their happy homes, without seeking such vain 
enjoyments. Their joyous fire-side was their 
only stage, and in the cheerful circle themselves 
were the actors ; and for happiness, they needed 
not to resort to the crowded ball, or to the theatre, 
overflowing with the giddy, pleasure-seeking 
multitude. And we can confidently express the 
opinion, that their religious scruples would have 
prevented their attendance, had such institutions 
then had an existence within the bounds of their 
goodly city. 

John. This is very satisfactory, sir. The 
account you have given us, speaks well for the 
moral and religious character of the former 
inhabitants of the city. 



OF NEW-YORK. 67 

Henry. But this is only the bright side of the 
picture, I suppose. And there are, undoubtedly, 
things, that could be told us, which would casta 
deep shade upon the brightness of the view. 

Uncle. You are quite right, Henry. If 
we find their excellencies in some things, we can 
also see their failings in others. But you ap- 
pear to have already received some information 
on this subject ; and I will thank you to men- 
tion some things wherein you remember them 
to have come short of the standard of the present 
day ; or in other words, those which we now 
look upon as blemishes in their moral character. 

Henry. If I have been informed aright, they 
had public^ lotteries, which were patronized by 
all classes of society; intemperance was rife in 
the land; and, lastly, the blot oi slavery sullies 
their reputation. 

Uncle. Yes, these charges cannot be denied; 
they stand out prominently upon the pages of 
their history. But if we fail to wipe away en- 
tirely the stain, let us endeavour, by a know- 
ledge of the attendant circumstances, to mitigate 
the rigour of our judgment. Public lotteries, 
though now prohibited by the law of the state, 
were much in vogue here eighty or a hundred 
years ago ; and not only here, but in all the 
cities and provinces of his Britannic majesty, on 
this side of the Atlantic ; and in England too. 
They were employed, by the government of 
this and other provinces, in raising money for 
6 



68 THE CHURCHES 

the public expenses, such as paying- and sus- 
taining armies, erecting public buildings, for 
charitable or other purposes, and for providing 
forts and military stations on tlie frontiers. 
Columbia College in this city, then, and for 
many years, called " King's College," was 
founded by the means of the avails of a pub- 
lic lottery. They were in common use also 
in Connecticut, and even in New-Haven, the 
palladium of Connecticut's religion and mo- 
rality. There is still extant, a printed scheme 
of a lottery originated for the purpose of build- 
ing a public wharf in that city. Whether this 
was the famous " long wharf," or some ante- 
rior one, you may reserve as a matter of inqui- 
ry. You see by this, how extensively they 
were in use. But it does not appear, that the 
people were, then, at all aware of the pernicious 
tendencies of the system upon the community at 
large. This was a lesson of sad experience, 
which the lapse of time alone could teach them. 
We, however, find a law, early enforced, for- 
bidding the use of private lotteries. And al- 
though this system of immorality existed long 
in our city, yet it is a matter of praise to the 
great Ruler of the universe, in whose hands is 
"the heart of the king," that a sound and health- 
ful legislation has at length swept it all away. 

John. Intemperance, sir, is the second 
charge. 

Uncle. But this is a charge which lies 



OF NEW-YORK. 69 

equally at the door of all, for many generations 
back. Not that they favoured or countenanced 
mtemperance, but that they were, universally, 
temperate drinkers, and the crealur^, alcohol, 
was in common use. You will find frequent 
mention in the old papers, of the joyous occa- 
sions in this city, at the birth-day celebrations 
of the king-, princes, dukes, &c. On these oc- 
casions, the governor, mayor, aldermen, and 
chief men of the city, after the regular morning 
service in the Trinity Church, were accustomed 
to assemble at the fort, and spend the remainder 
of the day in drinking bumpers to the health of 
" His Majesty," &c. While the people with- 
out, amply supplied with the same, or coarser 
stimulants, kept up the scene. Here was the 
great mistake of our predecessors; they were 
unacquainted with the only touchstone of safety, 
total abstinence. 

Henry. This we can the more readily pass 
over, seeing we were all, so lately, in the same 
condemnation. 

Uncle. But they were not altogether blinded 
to the desolating effects of strong drink, though 
they failed of reaching the true ground of safe- 
ty. We find the assembly of Nov. 1750, pass- 
ing an act to restrain tavern-keepers and inn- 
holders, from selling strong liquors to servants, 
and apprentices; and from giving large credit 
to any. Thus we see that they had, at least, 
some suspicions of the monster. 



70 THE CHURCHES 

John. Then, lastly, comes slavery, sir. 

Uncle. Yes, and this is the most painful sub- 
ject of all, boys: still we must meet it. But, 
as the cortsideration of the subject will require 
more of our time than we can at present spare, 
we will defer it till we meet again ; when I 
will present you with a short account of slavery 
as it once existed in the city and province of 
New York. 



CHAPTER SEVENTH. 

COLONIAL SLAVERY. NEGRO PLOT. 

Henry. Slavery, sir, is the last serious charge 
I have to brino- aofainst the Christian character 
of our city predecessors. And it is a point on 
Avhich wc are especially desirous of receiving 
information, such as we are confident that you 
can give us. We would like to gather some- 
thing of its history here, sir. 

Uncle. It is, indeed, a heavy charge, boys, to 
bring against any people or nation. And in 
giving you some historical data of its origin 
and existence here, I must necessarily relate 
many things that were consequent upon its 
existence, which darken rather than brighten 



OF NEW -YORK. 71 

the view we have already taken. Although 
this mora] blot no longer sullies our reputation 
as a state, and the rising generation seem 
scarcely to be conscious of the fact, yet the time 
has not long been passed vvhen all the horrors 
and evils, both physical and moral, of such a 
system of cruelty and oppression, were rife in 
the midst of us. Consequently, when we advert 
to some startling tales of fact, we will advert to 
them as the legitimate fruits of the existence of 
slavery, and blame our predecessors rather for 
the system than for the fruits of it. You would 
be surprised, in looking over the old newspa- 
pers of that day, to see the numerous evidences 
of the existence of that dreadful system that 
abound there. Look, for instance, into this pa^ 
per, of the year 1730, and read. 

John. New-York Gazette, September 21st, 
1730. " To be sold at Benjamin D'Harrette's 
house, one negro man, named Scipio, a cooper, 
about 22 years old; and one ditto, named j\lus- 
ter, a house-carpenter and ploughman, and fit 
for country work, about 26 years old.'' 

Henry. Another, sir. October 12th, 1730. 
"To be sold on reasonable terms, a likely negro 
girl, about 18 years of age — a likely negro boy, 
about 16 3^ears of age — both born in this city. 
They can speak good English and Dutch, and 
are bred up to JiU sorts of housework. And 
also, a new negro man. Inquire at the Post 
Office, New York." 
6* 



72 THECHURCHES ^ 

I 

John. And this in New- York! But there i 

must have been slaves in the city, I presume, j 

long before the date of this paper ? ; 

Uncle. Yes, nearly a hundred years before 
this. Several free negroes appear on the city 

records, as patentees of lands, as early as the ! 

5'-ear 1643, while William Kieft, the builder of j 
the first church, was still governor. And still 
more, under Governor Stuyvesant's commis- 
sion, in 1646. It is said that Governoi Stuyve- 

sant came to New-Amsterdam, or New-York, ■ 
from Brazil, and brought with him some free 

negroes, whom he settled, as freemen, upon \ 

farms, near his own residence, on his bowery, ! 

Henry. The governor's farm gave name, | 

I suppose, to the street now known as the ; 

Bowery ? j 

Uncle. Yes. It was formerly called "the 

High Road to Boston." j 

John. Then this brave governor was not a j 

slaveholder 1 \ 

Uncle. It appears not from this. Some i 

have said that Africans were brought into i 

the city, as slaves, by the Dutch, before their I 

surrender in 1604 : and that they were < 

procured from Curacoa, an island in the Car- j 

ribbean Sea. But others aflirm, that they : 

were introduced into the province as slaves, | 

FIRST, by the Engiisli, instead of the Dutch ; I 

who brought them from Barbadoes, where j 

they purchased them in exchange for pro- ] 



O F N E W - Y O R K . 73 

visions, and such other necessaries of life. 
However this may be, we find early records 
of their being here, and early acts of legislation 
in regard to them as slaves, after the government 
passed into the hands of the English. Slaves 
in this province, and in our goodly city, were 
treated generally in the same manner that they 
are treated elsewhere. They were publicly 
bouo'ht and sold ; let out as chatties or working- 
animals; and looked upon as a race approxi- 
mating to the brute creation. Their liberties 
as men were very much restricted ; or rather, 
their restrictions as slaves were unnecessarily 
increased. They were debarred the privilege 
of often seeing each other, or of assembling 
more than two or three together at the same 
time, except in the presence of some white per- 
son. For slight crimes, they were " burnt in the 
hand ;" which was a common mode of punish- 
ment in those days. And for crimes of greater 
magnitude, burning at the, stake was the horrid 
resort for punishment, There are many instances 
of this kind on recoid. 

Henry, This was one of the most dreadful 
fruits of the system, sir. I suppose there were 
slave auctions then ? 

Uncle. Yes. Slaves were generally sold at 
public auction ; and these auctions were general- 
ly held at the Coffee House, a well-known place 
of resort in those days. 

The Provincial Assembly early laid taxes 



74 THECIIURCHES 

upon slaves as property, which might have acted 
somewhat as a depression upon the system. In 
1737, the Assembly laid the following taxes by 
law: For every negro, or other slave, imported 
from Africa, the sum of 40 shillings; and for 
every slave from other places, four 'pounds. 
But the circumstance of most importance con- 
nected with the history of slavery in this city, 
was the celebrated " negro plot," in the year 
1740-4), of which you have probably heard 
somewhat. 

Henry. It was during Governor Clarke's 
administration, I believe, sir? 

Uncle. It was: and it occasioned much dis- 
turbance in the colony for a long while. There 
were, at the time of the " Conspiracy," about 
eight hundred slaves scattered around in the 
different families in and about the city ; and 
these were supposed to be engaged in a horrid 
plot, to burn the city and murder the inhabit- 
ants, their masters. The first circumstance 
that awakened the fears of the people was the 
burning of the "King's Chapel," on Wednes- 
day, March 18, 1741. This was the first of 
that series of alarming fires which occurred 
during that memorable winter of 1740-41 ; 
and Its origin was accounted for in difl^erent 
ways. The report of a conspiracy among the 
slaves, to burn the town and murder the citizens, 
had no!: yet been spread, and the fire was as- 
cribed to accident. Thi^ supposition at first 



OF NEW -YORK. 75 

appeared plausible, and was without doubt 
founded in the truth. But as soon as the 
whisperings of a conspiracy began to circulate, 
the whole torrent of accusation was turned upon, 
the poor slaves, and many of them were arrested 
immediately upon suspicion^ and confined in. 
dismal dungeons, to await trial and punish- 
ment. 

John. But were they indeed guilty? 

Uncle. You have given me a difficult ques- 
tion. There was undoubtedly something 
connected with the Spanish negroes, who 
had lately come into, the colony, to give 
rise to such an opinion. But at this late day, it 
is extremely difficult for us to draw the line of 
separation between the truth and error in the 
'case — between the innocent and the guilty 
ones. Many were at first arrested upon mere 
suspicion, or circumstantial evidence of their 
guilt, and thrown into prison, there to await 
their trial, and perhaps condemnation. Others, 
for fear of the same fate, and urged on by 
bribes as well as threats, confessed many things, 
both true and false ; and in some instances, to 
gave their lives, told tales of their own in- 
vention. Accusers we|re encouraged, and their 
accusations were received, until, at length, a 
"negro conspiracy" was believed to have been 
really planned ; and many poor, unhappy, 
friendless sons of Africa had to atone for their 
crimes, real or fanciful, at the stake or on the 



76 T H E C II U R c ir E s 

gibbet. Many a heart-rending- tale of the un- 
happy suflerers could be told, had we the time 
to bestow upon their consideration ; and many 
friendless slaves thus died, innocent of the 
charge. One, poor Quack, who belonged to a 
Mr. Rosevrlt, was burnt, on charge of setting 
fire to the Chapel. Another, by the name of 
Cuffee, was condemned to die on the same day, 
on charge of being a ringleader in the conspi- 
racy. Both persisted in proclaiming their in- 
nocence, even when assured thev must inevita- 
bly die. But on Saturday, Ma"y 30th, 1741, 
both suffered a dreadful and cruel death, being 
burnt at ihe stake, 'i'he Recorder of the city 
in that year says: "The criminals showed 
<rreat terror in their countenances, and looked 
as if they would have gladly discovered all they 
knew of this accursed scheme, could they have 
had any encouragement in hope of pardon." 
But no ! there was no hope of pardon ; and the 
poor neoroes could do nothing more than to 
continuilly repeat the fruitless protestations of 
their innocence. 

Jo/m. Were these all that were executed, 
sir? 

Uncle. O, no ! Would that I could answer 
you in the affirmative. There were executed, 
in all, of white persons, /c-i?//" ; and of negroes, 
tiaelvc were burnt at the stake, and fourteen 
were hanged. 

Henri/. And is the spot known, where 



OF NEW-YORK. 77 

these dreadful orgies in honour of the spirit of 
slavery were performed ? 

Unc/e. Yes, the spot is known, and I can 
clearly point it out to you on the map of the city. 
It was on a rise of ground, near what was called 
"Potbaker's Hill," and is now to be found in 
the middle of the block bounded by Duane, 
Chatham and Pearl streets, and City-hall place. 
" City-hall place," you know is a new name for 
" Augustus-street ;" and in those days, Duane- 
street, was known as Barley-street. That spot 
is now consecrated to nobler service, being about 
the site of the present Chatham-street Chapel. 
What a change time has wrought ! Slavery no 
longer shows its hydra head in the midst of us. 
The year of 1799, which knocked off their 
manacles, was a blessed day to the Africans of 
New York. 

Tvvo years previous to this memorable year, 
in 1797, the number of Africans, bond or free, 
in communion with the different churches in 
the city, was as follows : — 
In the Dutch Church, nine members. 

Presbyterian Church, twelve members. 

Episcopal Church, one hundred and fifty 

members. 

Methodist Church, one hundred and 

forty members. 
Scotch Presbyterian Church, one mem- 
ber. 
German Lutheran Church^two members. 



78 T H i: C H U R C H E S 

In Mr. Pilmore's, Christ, Church, ten mem- 
bers. 
—- Independent Church, five members. 
. Moravian Church, two members. 

The whole number of coloured people in the 
city in 1797, was about two thousand. Since 
that time they have greatly increased. Of 
their situation as citizens, and their condition as 
Christians, we may, perhaps, have an opportu- 
nity of conversing at some future time. 

Henfy. Where were these poor executed 
Africans buried, sir ? 

Uncle. Those that were executed at the stake, 
needed of course no grave to enclose their burnt 
bodies ; their ashes were blown about by the 
winds, and had no sepulchre but the wide world. 
Those that were hung, were probably buried 
near where Chambers-street crosses from Broad- 
way to City-Hall Place; as the "Negro Bury- 
ing Ground" was long known on the north side 
of a hill, sloping down from the Bridewell to- 
wards Barley, now Duane, street. - 

This suspected conspiracy on the part of the 
negroes, was considered by the inhabhants of 
the city as a great calamity, as well it might, 
had it been real ; and on the occasion a day of 
public fasting and prayer was observed. Here 
is a short notice of it, given by the recorder of 
the city, Mr. Horsemauden, in his account of 
the conspiracy. You may read it, Henry, as 
it will give us some acquaintance with the man- 



OF NEW- YORK. 79 

ner in which such days were kept in our city a 
hundred years ago. 

Heimj. "Wednesday, ISthofMay, 1741. This 
being- the day appointed by the Heutenant-gov- 
ernor's proclamation, issued the 10th of April 
last, to Ise observed throughout the province as 
a day of public fasting and humiliation; the 
same was reverently and decently observed, 
particularly in this city, by persons of all per- 
suasions; the shops were all shut up, and per- 
sons of all ranks resorted to their respective 
places of divine worship, and seemed deeply 
affected with a sense of the calamities with 
which we had of late been visited." 



CHAPTER EIGHTH. 

THE PRIMITIVE INDIAN INHABITANTS OF OUR 
ISLAND. 

John. You promised us, I think, sir, at some 
future time, a history of the poor Indians, that 
once inhabited this island, where we now live 
so happily. I hope that time has now arrived. 

Henry. Yes, uncle, we are both anxious to 
hear the story of the red man. 

Uncle. I am perfectly willing that your 
7 



80 THE CHURCHES 

wish, in this respect, should be my law ; ixni, 
in conformity to this, before we touch the par- 
ticular history of the different churches, we 
will turn back a step, and inquire somewhat 
concerning the condition in which the Indians, 
the primitive inhabitants and owners of the 
country, were found by the Dutch navigators 
and settlers. Nor will we consider it any in^ 
terruption of our church history, but as forming 
a regular part of our general introductory nar- 
ration. 

Henry. And I think it is but right, sir, that 
we should take a glance at the history of the 
poor Indians ; who have been obliged to retreat 
before the gradual encroachments of the white 
man, until they are no longer to be seen east of 
the Alleghanies. 

Uncle. Yes, they have long disappeared 
from these their former haunts and homes, 
where they used to hunt their deer, light their 
council fire, and dance their war-dance, with 
no fearful apprehension of white intruders, or 
European tyrants, who should drive them west 
of the mountains, and finally force them into 
the regions of the Rocky Mountains, for secu- 
rity and rest. In the pleasant waters that sur- 
round our city, they used to row their light 
skifTs, and fish, undisturbed by the approach of 
strangers. Here they used to live, and roam 
through forests dark and deep, and in the sim- 
plicity of their heartjs, worshipped the Great 



OFNEW-YORK. 81 

Spirit, whom they considered the God of Na- 
ture. To him they erected sacrificial altars, 
Avhere now the never-ceasing hum of a busy 
and thriving city marks the abode of civilized 
man. And a special interest should be felt by 
us, in the history of those much abused people, 
whom the first navigators found in quiet pos- 
session of this island, and who, but two short 
centuries ago, were the sole and unrivalled 
owners of the soil. 

John. I have heard that they were the Man- 
hattoes, sir. 

Uncle. They have been sometimes called so, 
I know. There has been heretofore some dis- 
pute and much doubt, concerning their identity 
with the other tribes that were found in the sur- 
rounding country : and even their name was 
for a longtime undetermined. Some have sup- 
posed them to have been of the Mingoes, or a 
part of the Five Nations; and others have 
made them to be a distinct tribe, under the name 
of Manhaitoes, as you mentioned, or Manhat- 
tanoes, both of Vv^hich propositions are doubtless 
false. By the researches of the Rev. John 
Heckewelder, a Moravian missionary of much 
note, who spent the greater part of his life 
among the Indians, and probably had more 
means for such information than any other man 
then living in the United States, it is satisfacto- 
rily ascertained, that the Indians of Manhattan 
Island were of the powerful tribe of the Dela- 



82 THECHURCHES 

wares ; but they had a provincial name, which 
was Monseys, or Mi?isi, as they called them- 
selves; which word signified, in their language, 
a peninsula, 

John. But was not the island formerly called 
Man'! ado es ? 

U/icle. It was. But the name Manhattoes, 
of the primitive inhabitants, or Manhattans, as 
^j-ou will see, had a different origin. That the 
New-York Indians, or the Minsi, were of the 
tribe of the Delawares, there can now be but 
little doubt ; as the descendants of that tribe, 
among whom Mr. Heckewelder Avas for many 
years a missionary, were, fifty years ago, per- 
fectly familiar with the history of Manhattan, 
now New-York. They always spoke of it as 
Manhattans, and Manhatta7iink, which means, 
in their language, the same as the island or place 
of general intoxicaliori, from a general intoxica- 
tion of the natives, said to have taken place upon 
the first arrival of the Europeans; as we shall 
see. 

The Delawares were the most powerful and 
extensive tribe of Indians in this part of the 
country, and always prided themselves in never 
having been conquered by the sword of other 
nations. Their possessions extended from Man- 
hattan Island, south almost to the Potomac, and 
inland as far as or beyond the river which now 
bears their name. 

Henry. Whence came the opinion, sir, that 
they were Mingoes ? 



OF NEW-YORK. 83 

Uncle. The opinion that the primitive Man- 
hattans were Mingoes might have arisen from 
the fact, that the Indians who were known here 
for many years after the settlement, and those 
who came in here to trade at certain seasons of 
the year, were Mingoes. But this is no evidence 
of their having been the primitive owners of the 
soil. The Mingoes and Delawares were always 
inimical to each other. But the Delawares 
were always able to maintain their sovereignty, 
and to keep possession of their lands, until the 
white man came ; when they were obliged to 
flee from the united forces of the whites and 
Mingoes, who had become friends, in order to 
possess themselves of the lands of the Delawares. 
The Delawares then retreated south and west, 
but the mingoes dwelt for many years in differ- 
ent parts of the State of New- York. With these 
the old inhabitants of the city were quite familiar, 
and always showed them great hospitality. 

Jo/m. I suppose, of course, that the great en- 
gine of the destruction of the Manhattans, was 
Jire-icater. 

Uncle. As Avas the case with the other tribes, 
so with the Delawares. After they had once 
tasted, they became exceedingly fond of ardent 
spirits, ox fire-water, as they appropriately called 
it. They were ignorant of the ruinous conse- 
quences of intemperance upon the health and 
constitution, until they found out the truth by 



84 THECHURCHES 

sad, sad expv?rience. Then their habits were 
too strong to be easily broken. 

I make these remarks in reference to the ac- 
count given us by Mr. Heckewelder, of the first 
arrival of the Europeans at this island, which I 
will leave you to read. In it you will find the 
account which the Indians thfmselves give of 
that event. The pompous landing of the white 
man; the first experiment of Jire-waier upoo. 
the natives; their mutual barter; and the pro- 
mise of the European strangers to return again 
the next year, you will find fully described. 



CHAPTER NINTH. 

INDIANS CONTINUED. 

Uncle. Mr. Heckewelder's account of tl^e 
first arrival of the Europeans at this island, to 
which I have referred you, is of great import- 
ance, as regards our knowledge of the primitive 
Manhattans. Here is an extract from it. 

Henry. " After this general intoxication had 
ceased, (during \thich the strangers had con- 
fined themselves to the vessel,) the red clothed 
man came ashore again, and distributed presents 
among the Indians, such as beads, axes, hoes, 



OF NEW-YORK. 85 

Stockings, &c. ; and made them understand, by 
signs, that he would see them again next year, 
when they would bring them more presents, 
and stay with them awhile ; but that as his men 
could not live without eating, they should want 
a little land of them, where to sow seeds, and 
raise herbs. The vessel arrived the season fol- 
lowing, and they were much rejoiced at seeing 
each other; but that the whites laughed at the 
Indians, seeing that they knew not the use of 
the axes, hoes, &c., which they had given to 
them; they having hung the axes and hoes 
(with no handles) about their breasts, as orna- 
ments; and the stockings they had made use of 
as tobacco-pouches. The whites now put han- 
dles in the hoes and axes, and dug in the ground, 
and cut down trees, and showed them the use 
of the stockinfrs. Here (say they) a general 
laughter ensued among the Indians, seeing that 
they had remained for so long a time ignorant 
of the use of so valuable instruments." 

Uncle. Such is Mr. Hcckewelder's account 
of the origin of the name Manhattan. The 
Mihicanni, (called by the Entjlish Mohigans, 
and by the Dutch Mihicanders,) gave the sanie 
name to this island, but derived its meaning 
from a different source, — from some wood which 
grew here. 

John. But was there no other name for the 
island ? 

Uncle. The Monseys, or Minsi, who used 
to live here, sometimes called it Laajphawah- 



86 THE CHURCHES 

king, which is interpreted, the place of stringing 
beads or wampum. They say this name was 
given in consequence of beads being distributed 
among them abundantly by the Europeans; so 
that after the European vessel had returned, 
wherever one looked, he would see the Indians 
employed in stringing together the beads, or 
wampum, the whites had given them. 

Henry. The Europeans, I believe, made it 
a custom, wherever they landed, to propitiate 
the Indians with strong drink; did they not? 

Uncle. Yes, they did. And so it is recorded 
by Robert Juet, who wrote a journal of Hud- 
son's voyage up the river which bears his name, 
that " Sept. 21st, 1609, some people came aboard 
the ship above the Highlands, whom Hudson 
and his company made drunk. We astonished 
the Indians, and filled them with fear." 

'i'he Europeans, it seems, were too jealous 
of their own interests to warn them against the 
use of it; as they found they could always ef- 
fect better bargains with them after having 
made a free distribution o{ Jire-ivater. The la- 
mentable consequeucc of this was, that the In- 
dians were universally given to intoxication, 
whenever they could procure their much-loved 
whiskey; with which, provided compensation 
was given, the whiles appear to have been al- 
ways ready to furnish them. Such easy access 
to the fire-water, brought things to a dreadful 
pass in the condition of the poor Indians ; and 



or NEW -YORK. 87 

as they were unable to resist the least tempta- 
tion of the kind offered to them, it laid them 
open to all sorts of impositions and cruelties. 

But a salutary law was passed by Governor 
Andros and the Council, July 9th, 1676, which 
served to protect the Indians, to some degree, 
from such great cruelties. The law was to 
this effect; that, if an Indian was seen coming 
out of a house drunk, that would be sufficient 
ground of evidence against the house, for the 
conviction of its owners; and that, if an Indian 
was seen drunk in the street, the house where 
he procured the liquor being unknown, then 
the whole street should be fined. This of course 
reflects much honour upon the Governor and 
Council of 1676. 

Henry. Governor Clinton, also, I believe, 
in July, 1753, issued a proclamation, prohibiting 
the sale of ardent spirits to the Indians ; a vio- 
lation of which order was to be punished with 
the utmost rigour of the law, 

John. But what was worse than all this, I 
have heard, that some of the Indians were slaves 
to the whites. Was it so ? 

Uncle. Yes, I am sorry to say, it cannot be 
denied. It is a shameful /ac^, for we find it on 
record, that many of the native Indians — lords 
of the soil, were made to be slaves ; and I 
could refer you to many instances, in the public 
papers, where rewards are offered for them, as 
runaways from their masters. 



88 THE CHURCHES 

This slavery of the Indians may be accounted 
for in the following manner: — children were 
taken as pledges from the Indians for debts; 
the Indians, failing to liquidate the debts, failed 
also to redeem their children, who consequently 
grew up slaves. This we know to have been 
frequently the case ; as we find that Governor 
Clinton, in 1750, issued a proclamation, forbid- 
ding "his Majesty's subjects, in the County of 
Albany, to take any Indian children as pledges 
for debts from the Indians; which has been 
represented as a practice too common among 
them." Thus were they ill-treated on every 
hand, 

John. But now the poor Indians are all 
gone! 

Uncle. Yes, the Indian Aborigines of New- 
York, have all disappeared ! The dying em- 
bers of their last council-fire have long since 
gone out. No war-whoop for the last half 
century has been heard among our hills, or re- 
verberated along our verdant plains. And 
their descendants are now no longer seen among 
us, except with the silence and reserve of 
strangers, visiting, as for the last time, the graves 
of their forefathers. 

The Minsi, or the real Manhattans, could 
not brook the ill-treatment they received from 
the white man, and fled westward from his ty- 
ranny, to roam in freedom over the sweet val- 
leys and verdant hills of Pennsylvania. But 



O F N E W - Y O R K . 89 

the Mingoes, for a long time continued to dwell 
along the banks of the Hudson and the Mo- 
hawk. Before they were driven too far north- 
ward, they were in the habit of making regular 
visits to the city, at particular seasons of the 
year, bringing with them their peltry, brooms, 
wooden-trays, baskets, &c., to dispose of to the 
citizens. On such visits, they had particular 
favourite spots for their encampments. And 
one of these spots was about an old windmill, 
which stood not far from Broadway, between 
Courtlandt-street and Crown-street, as Liberty- 
street was then called. And there they have 
been encamped, as late as the year 1740; less 
than a hundred years ago. 

The last visit that the Indians paid, in a body, 
to the city, was in the year 1746. Several 
hundred of them then appeared to hold a con- 
ference with the British Governor, George 
Clinton. They came down the Hudson river 
in their canoes, and landed where St. John's 
Park now is, whose side on Hudson-street then 
formed the river's brink. Thence they marched 
in Indian file down Broadway, to the' governor's 
house, at Fort George. They made a great 
display in their marches up and down the wide 
street ; and this is remembered as the last time 
they came for the purpose of making treaties. 
They were, as usual, presented with many gifts 
by the governor and citizens. 



90 THE CHURCHES 

He.nry. Can you tell us anything else of the 
Manhattans, sir? 

Uncle. The Manhattans, I said, Avere of the 
Delawares; and of the Delawares I can tell 
you the following : — Like the Mohicans and 
others, they were divided into three tribes, viz. 
the Turtle, the Turkey, and the Wolf. The 
Turtle was considered the greatest or head of 
the three; because of his being able to live both 
on land and in water; and on account of the 
great number of eggs that the female turtle lays. 
The Delawares were very numerous, and w^ere 
spread over a great extent of country, from 
Manhattan Island southward. They had a 
great many branches and small tribes, that took 
provincial names; as the Monseys,ox Minsi, of 
Manhattan. There was also another of these 
branch tribes, that resided about Manhattan 
Island, called the Unami ; and one of their 
great chiefs, of the Turtle tribe, dwelt at Am- 
boy, (across the New Jersey Bay,) where the 
Europeans first arrived. 

But the poor, ill-treated red men, have at 
length all disappeared from our midst. Their 
bones and their ashes mingled with the soil, are 
all that now remain of them on our island. 
Their graves, it is said, were not unfrequently 
cut into by the workmen, while digging down 
the hills in the northeast part of the city, on the 
Stuyvesant lands. They were known by the 
quantities of oyster shells which had been inter- 



or NEW-YORK. 91 

• Ted with the bodies. Some frail fragments of 
pottery were also found. These were the last 
relics of the noble race of the Manhattans. 
Such is the short history of the primitive in- 
habitants of our island : and thus have they all 
disappeared. And we can but mourn over, 
their fate. Instead of be ii;>^' taught by the white 
man in the ways of Christianity, to pray — and 
read God's holy will, and to prepare for a hea- 
ven in another world, far more blessed than 
their imaginary land of ne'ver-failing hunting 
grounds, they were taught to love whiskey, 
steal, swear, and fight, and instructed in the 
ways of wickedness and deceit. 



CHAPTER TENTH. 

THE CHURCH IN THE FORT. 

Uncle. You will recollect that I told you, 
that the first church ever built in the city, stood 
within the walls of the old fort, a few rods 
southwest of what we now call the Bowling- 
Green. 

John. It was built in 1642, I think. 

Uncle. Yes ; and although some have sup- 
posed there to have been another, prior to this, 
8 



92 THE CHURCHES 

even so early as the year 1630; still, as there 
is no direct historical information concerning- 
such a building, we will consider the year 1642 
as the date of the erection of the first church 
within the bounds of our city, for the public 
worship of Jehovah. This was completed irl 
Governor Kieft's time ; and by some is said to 
have enclosed the prior one, which a vague 
and uncertain tradition has handed doAvn as 
having been of frail materials, and standing on 
the same spot. An organized church was un- 
doubtedly in existence before 1642; but some 
room within the fort, perhaps, would have been 
sufficiently large for their accommodation. 
About this first church, at this day, little is 
known. There has no description of the build- 
ing come down to us. It was undoubtedly 
built in the old Dutch style of architecture ; 
and though it might seem uncouth now-a-days, 
it then answered every conceivable or desirable 
purpose for a church, in the eyes of those who 
built it. 

A Mr. Van der Donk, who lived in New Neth- 
erlands about the time of the building of the first 
church, and w^rote a short history of his own 
times, has handed down to us a map of the city 
as it appeared then, in which the roof and cupola 
of the old church in the fort is visible above the 
'rest of the buildings. 

Henry. Had it a steeple, sir 1 

Uncle. I presume not, if by a steeple you 



OF NEW- YORK. 93 

mean a spire. Some sort of a cupola it doubtless 
had, accordin.ofto Mr. Van der Donk, as we find 
it was furnished with a bell. This was the 
common alarm bell of the city, and was rung on 
all such occasions as fires, insurrections, appre- 
hensions of an attack from an ent-my, &c. It 
was also rung on some other occasions, of which 
the following will give you an example. It is 
noticed on the city records, that for slandering 
the Rev. Everard Bogardus, first pastor of the 
church in the fort, ^female is obliged to appear, 
at the sound of the bell at the fort, there, before 
the Governor and Council, to say " she knew 
he was honest and pious, and that she lied 
falsely." 

John. Slander was a crime then as well as 
now it appears. 

Uncle. Yes ; and the penalty was a fine, to 
be paid in inoney, and for the benefit of the 
poor. 

Henry. A very good plan, I think ; and if iL 
were in force now, the poor might be very well 
off. 

Unde. Perhaps so. But this incident shows 
us how early the bell was in use at the fort. 
The church, or chapel as it is called, stood ad- 
joining the Governor's house, and the vaults be- 
neath it became the burial place of some of the 
Dutch and English governors, I suppose it took 
the name of " King's Chapel" soon after it came 
into the hands of the English, which it ever aftei 
retained. 



94 THE CHURCHES 

John. How long, did this original chapel 
stand 1 

Uncle. It stood unaltered, as the Dutch built, 
till the year 1691, when it was remodelled, and 
perhaps the superstructure entirely taken down 
and rebuilt. It then remained till the year 1741, 
when it was destroyed by fire, at the time of the 
famous Negro Plot, of which I have told you. 

Henry. I remember, sir : it was the first of 
the alarming fires. 

Uncle. Yes; and it undoubtedly took fire by 
accident, although the poor negroes had to suf- 
fer all the opprobrium of the supposed deed, and, 
what is worse, the dreadful ciTects of such a sus- 
picion. Thv© true and plain account of the fire 
appears to be this, as was presented to the court 
at the time of the trial of the accused incendiaries: 
On the same morning of the nre, the Lieutenant 
Governor ordered a plumber to mend a leak in 
the gutter, between the house and the chapel, 
which joined ; and the man carrying his fire-pot 
with coals, to keep his soldering iron hot, some 
sparks were probably blown, and lodging on the 
shingles of the roof, thus caused the fire. This 
was on the morningof Wednesday, March i8th, 
1741 ; and about one o'clock in the afternoon, 
the fire broke out on the roof of the government 
house, about 20 feet frpm the end next to the 
chapel. Upon the chapel's bell ringing, great 
numbers of people flocked thither to the assist- 
ance of the Lieutenant Governor and his family, 
and succeeded in removing their personal and 



I OF NEW-YORK. 95 

household furniture, and in saving most of the 
valuable papers and records of the colon}'' from 
destruction. But unfortunately, at the time, a 
violent gale was blowing from the southeast, 
which rendered the flames so raging and heat 
so intense, that the fire engines were of compara- 
tively little use; and the buildings were left ex- 
posed to the fury of the merciless element, which 
soon reduced them to a heap of ruins. Active 
measures, also, had to be taken to prevent the 
flames from spreading into the city around. 
Thus perished the King's Chapel, which was 
the oldest place of worship in the city of New- 
York. 

In its vaults were interred the remains of 
several of the governors who had deceased 
while here, and which were afterwards, in the 
year 1797, removed to other burying grounds. 
In that year, which you know was after the 
American Revolution„the whole of Fort George 
was razed, and the hill upon which it stood cut 
down to the level of the surrounding streets, to 
make room for the house of the Governor of the 
state of New- York. 

John. Did the Dutch clergymen continue to 
ofiiciate in the chapel until its final destruction 
in 1741 ? 

Tiicle. No. They took their leave of the 

fort, as the officiating chaplains, in the year 

169 1, when the primitive church of St. Nicholas, 

as one of our historians has called it, was taken 

8» 



96 THECHURCHES 

down, to make room for the English edifice. 
In this year they got their license to build the 
old Dutch church in Garden-street, where the 
Dutch congregation afterwards assembled. 
After that year, until the fire of 1741 destroyed 
it, the chapel of the fort was under the special 
care of chaplains from the Church of England. 
About the English chaplains very little is 
known, except merely the names of some of t 
them. The first one that I find mentioned, : 
after the erection of King's Chapel, in 1691, 
upon the foundation of the old Dutch chapel, / 
was John Millar, who was appointed minister 
and chaplain to the two companies of foot sol- 
diers, then stationed in New- York. In 1701, 
his successor was Rev. Mr. Brisac ; and in 1737, 
Rev. Mr. Orone. There were many others in 
the same capacity, but about whom we find 
nothing of interest to relate. 

Henry. Who were some of the Dutch cler- 
gymen, sir, besides the Rev. Everard Bogardus, 
whom you mentioned as the first pastor? 

Uncle. Mr. Bogardus, dying in the yfear 
1647, was succeeded by the Rev. John and 
Samuel Megapolensis, two brothers, who were 
known here as early as the year 1644. The 
Rev. Samuel Megapolensis survived his brother, 
and being a regular physician, both practiced 
and preached, in and about the city, until the 
year 1669, when it is said that he returned to 
Europe. He appears to have been liked by the 
people; so much so, that it is on record, that a 



OF NEW- YORK. 97 

Mr. Hagerman, and others in the congregation, 
built him a commodious dwelling-house, at 
their own private expense. Mr. Megapolensis 
preached in the fort before and after the sur- 
render of 1664. It is stated that he wrote and 
published a pamphlet, giving an interesting 
account of the country in those early days, 
and of the Mahakuase tribe of Indians. Be- 
fore Mr. Megapolensis left, there was associated 
with him, in the nninistry, the Rev. Samuel 
Drisius, about whom little else is known, except, 
that he was dead in the year 1669. About 
this time, in 1670, the pulpit became vacant, 
the elders and deacons applied to the Governor 
to take some care to provide orthodox minis- 
ters. Accordingly, the Governor issued his 
proclamation, offering 1000 guilders, and a 
house and fire-wood, to any clergyman of good 
character, who would come over from Holland 
and take charge of the New-York church. 

Henry. Lord Lovelace, I believe, was then 
Governor, sir? 

U/icle. Yes; and in answer to his proclama- 
tion, the Rev. Wilhemus Niewenhuysen, D. D. 
made his appearance from Holland, and was 
settled in New-York in 1671. He preached 
here for hve years, when he removed, and offi- 
ciated in the Reformed Dutch Church in Brook- 
lyn, then called Brookland, where he died in 
1680. 

He was succeeded by the Rev. Henricus 
Selyns, who was born and educated in Holland, 



98 THE CHURCHES 

whence he came to preach in Brooklyn, and 
in Governor Stuyvesant's chapel at the 
bouwerie, until 1664, when he returned to 
Europe. After a second call, he finally came 
over and settled in New- York in 1682, where 
he officiated until his death, which happened in 
the year 1700. 

"After Dominie Selyns left the church at 
the bouwerie, for Holland, it probably became 
incorporated with the Church of New- York, (as 
a transfer of members is recognized on their 
minutes,) whose ministers doubtless officiated 
at times inthat edifice." 

This brings us down to about the year 1693, 
and the erection of the old Dutch Church, in 
South-street, the first regular church ever built 
in the city, about whose history we will con- 
verse at another time. 



CHAPTER ELEVENTH. 

THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. 

Uncle. Our last conversation left us, I be- 
lieve, at the destruction of the old Dutch Chapel, 
and the commencement of the 18th century. 

Henry. Yes, sir; and at the erection of the 



OF NEW-YORK. 



99 



Garden-street church, which, you said, was 
about that time. 

Uncle. Ves; in the year 1693, being about 
two years after the English had rebuilt the 
chapel in the fort. This was the first of the 
regular Dutch churches in our city; and was, 
in the words of the historian Smith, " of stone, 
and ill-built, ornamented within by a small 
organ-loft, and brass branches."' 

Here is a view of it, as seen by Mr. David 
Grim, in 1790. 




It stood for nearly a century, until the year 
1791, when it was burnt; but, being rebuilt, it 
stood till December 16th, 1835, when, as you 



100 THE CHURCHES 

well know, it was again burnt to the ground, 
in the " Great Fire," as it is appropriately- 
called. 

John. Has it been built up again, sir ? 

Uncle. Yes, but not on the old site. If you 
will walk to the corner of Church and Murray 
streets, you will see a neat little church building, 
with an inscription stone in the front, with name, 
date, &c., which is all that now represents the 
old Garden-street church. When the church 
was first erected in Garden-street, there was 
much complaint against the situation, as being 
''too far out of ioicn ;^' but now, hardly any 
thing surrounds the old site, but high, six-story 
stores ; and it is altoge.ther too far down for the 
accommodation of the congregation. There 
was, of course, no Murray-street in those days. 

The next Dutch church was erected in 1729, 
and is the same that we now know as the 
"Middle Dutch:" it was then spoken of as the 
*'Ncw Church." Mr. Smith, the historian, 
mentioned above, describes it as follows : " The 
New Church is a high, heavy edifice, and has 
a very extensive area. It has no galleries, and 
will yet, perhaps, contain a thousand or twelve 
hundred auditors. The steeple of this church 
affords a most beautiful prospect, both of the 
city beneath, and the surrounding country. 

Henri/. Has it been altered much since then? 

Uncle. Not much, I believe, externally ; 
though, within, very materially changed. Mr. 



OF NEW-YORK. 101 

Mr. Smith describes it, you see, as without gal- 
leries. But galleries were erected in it a few 
years after the time he wrote. Excepting a 
slight injury by fire, sustained in the steeple in 
the year 1745, it stood without farther change 
or accident, until the breaking out of the Ame- 
rican revolution. At this time, the Dutch 
clergymen and most of the congregations, left 
the city, and fled to the towns and villages in 
the surrounding country. The Dutch congre- 
gations being considered in the light of enemies, 
and opposers to the interests of the crown in the 
colonies, their churches were seized upon, as 
lawful prey, by the British soldiery. 

Henry. Did they use them as churches ? 
Uncle. No ; but, as you will see, for far dif- 
ferent purposes. The British, at the taking of 
New- York, captured a large number of the 
American soldiers ; and the regular prisons of 
the city being not large enough to receive them 
all, the Presbyterian, French, North, and Mid- 
dle Dutch Churches, together with the old 
sugar-house, which still stands near the latter, 
were metamorphosed into prisons. The Mid- 
dle Dutch Church, it is said, had in it, at one 
time, nearly three thousand American prisoners. 
The pews were all torn out, and used as fire- 
wood. It was afterwards turned into a riding 
school for the British cavalry, in which they 
used to practice themselves in horsemanship ; 
riding around, and teaching their horses to leap 



102 THE CHURCHES 

over sticks raisccl for the purpose. But ils most 
common use was that of a prison ; and many a 
poor, honest soldier, and devoted patriot, ended 
his days within those walls, then rendered so 
dreary and dismal by the desecrations of the 
British hirelings. 

John. The galleries, too, were then torn 
dov.'n, I suppose. 

Uncle. Yes ; for they probably made as good 
fuel as the lower pews. 

Thus, you see what sacrilegious hands were 
laid upon our places of public worship in this 
city, during the revolution. But let us thank 
God that those troublous times are passed. Af- 
ter the peace between Engkrnd and the United 
States, in 1781, the former inhabitants returned 
to the city, and rebuilt their churches, which 
their enemies had destroyed. In old pictures of 
the Middle Dutch Church, you will notice a 
small door on each side of the building, besides 
the main entrances at the ends ; but, within 
later years, these have been closed up, and are 
now no longer seen. 

Henry. You mentioned the North Dutch 
Church; when was that built, sir? 

Uncle. The first stone of the North Dutch 
Church was laid in 1767; and the building 
was completed and dedicated to the worship of 
God, in 1769. The ground on which it was 
built was generously given for the purpose, by 
John Hardenbrook, J^sq., after whom, also, 



OF NEW -YORK. 103 

John-street takes its name. And if you will 
visit that grand and beautiful church, which 
stands at the corners of Fulton, William, and 
Ann streets, you can see, over the pulj)it, a 
drawing of the "family coat of arms" of this 
Mr, Hardenbrook. 

Jolin. Did those streets have the same names 
in those days, that they have now. 

Uncle. Ann-street was called as it is now, 
and also a part of William-street. But there 
have been some changes since. Fulton was 
then known as jF^ir-street ; and the upper part 
of William-street, above John, by the very 
curious name of Horse-and-cart-street, which 
arose from there being a hotel in that part of 
the street, with the sign of a horse and cart be- 
fore the door. 

John. That was, indeed, a singular name, 

Henri/. And I think that there are very few 
boys in the city who could find the Dutch 
Church, at the corner of Fair and Horse-and- 
cart streets. 

Uncle. There have been many such changes 
in the names of the streets since the revolution. 
The lower part of William-street, for example, 
from Wall-street down, was formerly called 
Smith-street. But, for these changes, you must 
compare some of the old with the new maps of 
the city. These three churches, which we 
have noticed, were all connected, (\n^ were gen- 
erally spoken of as " the Associate Churclv" 
9 



104 THE CHURCHES 

So that ministers who were called to either of 
these, were said to be called to the "Associate 
Church;" which appellation is still in use. 
Before we proceed to converse of their clergy- 
men, 1 will just mention, that it was formerly 
customary, iu these churches, to use, in taking 
up tlieir collections on the Sabbath, and other 
occasions, Idack bags, hanging" at the end of 
long handles, with bells attached to them. 
These would appear very singular now; but 
we are assured that they were formerly in use. 

Jo/iJi. The bells were to let people know 
that the bags were coming, I suppose. 

Uncle. Perhaps so. But, John, do you re- 
member who was the last Dutch minister that 
officiated in the old church at the fort? 

John. I think, sir, that it was the Rev. Hen- 
ricus Selyns. 

Uncle. Yes; and, as he survived til: the year 
1700, he was the first minister of the Garden- 
street Church, where he probably officiated for 
six or seven years. Of some of these first pas- 
tors of the Dutch, we know but little else than 
the date of their settlement here, and of their de- 
parture or death. Very comprehensive and 
instructive memoirs of some of the later ones, 
have been written and published ; but I have 
time to mention to you little else than their 
names. Mr. Selyn's successor was the Rev. 
G. Dubois, who was settled here from 1699 till 
1756. His first colleague was the Rev. 



OFNEW-YORK. 105 

Henricus Boel, who settled about the year 
1713, and died in 1754. A sudden illness car- 
ried him off in the 66th year of his age, after 
having been a pastor here for forty-one years. 
His remains were interred in the old Dutch 
Church, in Garden-street. He died esteemed 
and lamented by all ; and the public paper of 
the day spoke of him in the highest terms. 
The Rev. Johannes Ritzenia was settled, as an 
associ^e pastor, in 1744: left the city during 
the Avar, in 1776, and died in 1796. Next came 
the Rev. Lambertus De Ronde, in 1751, who 
died, at Schaghticoke, in 1795. All these were 
accustomed to preach entirely in the Dutch lan- 
guage. And their first preacher, in the Eng- 
lish language, was the Rev. Archibald Laidlie, 
a native of Scotland, who settled as one of the 
collegiate jiastors, in 1764. This introducing 
of the English language was much against the 
will and wishes of a great part of the Dutch 
Church, e^ecially the older m.embers, who 
were very much attached to their native tongue. 
But there were others, who wanted the English 
language introduced into the pulpit, and thought 
it absolutely essential to the welfare of the 
Dutch Church, as it undoubtedly was. And 
this difference of opinion, in relation to the lan- 
guage, occasioned a very foolish and injurious 
commotion, for some time, in the Dutch Church. 
But, on this controversy, I will not dwell. 
When you read the history of it, as now in va- 



105 THE CHURCHES 

rious ways printed, you may understand the 
whole. About a fortnight after his arrival, 
April 15, 1764, Mr. Laidlie preached his first 
sermon, (the first ever delivered in the Dutch 
Church, in the English language,) to a very 
crowded and attentive auditory. His labours 
among the people seemed to have been owned 
and blessed of God, and a revival of religion 
soon commenced in the church. The foUow- 
ino- anecdote is related concerninof him : At the 
close of a prayer-meeting, one evening, some 
pious, aged persons, who had always been ac- 
customed to hear the gospel preached in Dutch, 
their native tongue, gathered around Dr. Laid- 
lie, and addressed him — "Ah, Dominie! we 
offered many an earnest prayer in Dutch for 
your coming among us; and, truly, the Lord 
has heard us in English, and sent you to us." 
Dr. Laidlie died at Red Hook, in 1780. His 
colleague and successor was the Rev. John H. 
Livingston, D. D. ; for whose history I must 
refer you to his very valuable memoirs, written 
by the late Rev. Alexander Gunn, D. D. Dr. 
Livingston was settled in 1770, and died in 
1825. One of his colleagues was Rev. Wil- 
liam Lynn, D. D., who was pastor from 1785 
till 1805. His other colleagues and succes- 
sors were as follows: the Rev. G. A. Kuypers, 
settled 1789, and died in 1833; the Rev. John 
N. Abeel, pastor from 1795 till death, in 1812 ; 
the Rev. John Schureman, pastor from 1809 



OF NEW-YORK. 107 

till 1811 ; the Rev. Jacob Broadhead, D. D., 
settled in 1809; in 1813, removed to Philadel- 
phia till 1826, when he returned, and settled in 
the Broome-street Church ; the Rev. P. Mille- 
doler, from 1813 till 1820— now in New- 
Brunswick ; the Rev. John Knox, who is still 
with us; the Rev. Paschal N. Strong, settled 
1816, and died at St. Croix, W. I., April 7th, 
1825; the Rev. Dr. Brownlee, settled in 1826; 
and the Rev. Dr. De Witt, settled in 1827; 
both of whom, together with Dr. Knox, are still 
pastors of the "Associate Church." Of the 
other Dutch churches, which are not "asso- 
ciate,"' you, [lenry, may read this short account, 
which I have taken from Mr. Goodrich's very 
valuable Picture of New-York. 

Henry. "The first church, at Haerlem, one 
of the oldest buih on the island, was a small 
wooden edifice, 57 by 30 feet; a new building 
was erected in 1825, of brick, 50 by 65 feet, 
with a handsome spire. 

The fifth, in Herring-street, Greenwich, is 
of brick, 84 feet by 66, built in 1827." Where 
is Herring-street, sir ? 

Uncle. It is now called Bleecker-street, and 
the church is on the corner of Amos. The 
present pastor is the Rev. Mr. Marsellus. 

Henry. "The si.cth, Noith-West Church, 
in Franklin-street, 80 feet by 60, was built of 
stone, in 18C8. 

The seventh, at Harsenville, or Blooming- 
9* 



108 THE CHURCHES 

dale; size, 72 by 57 feet, built of stone in 1814. 
Pastor, Rev. Dr. Gunn." 

Uncle. Mr. Hunt is the present pastor of the 
Franklin-street church. Dr. Gunn has since 
deceased. He was much esteemed in this city, 
and is well known as the biographer of the late 
Rev. Dr. Livingston. Read on. 

Hennj. ''Eighth, Norlh-East Church, in 
Market -street, is a handsome stone edifice, of 81 
by 67 feet, built in 1819. 

Ninth, in King-street, built in 1826, of 
brick, 50 by 60 feet, with a spire. 

Tenth, in Forsyth-street, built in 1822, of 
brick, 60 by 45 feet. 

Eleventh, corner of Broome and Green. 
streets, built in 1823, of brick, 80 by 60 feet. 
The choir in this church is very good. 

Tioelfth, corner of Greene and Hamilton 
streets, is 56 by 75 feet, built, in 1824, of 
marble. 

Thirteenth, in Orchard, between Broome and 
Delancy streets, is of brick, stuccoed; with two 
handsome columns in front, supporting a neat 
pediment: behind the portico i» a square re- 
cess, or vestibule, through which is the entrance 
door; there are no galleries." 

Uncle. To these you may add the one in 
Ninth-street, near Broadway, now occupied by 
one of the Associate Churches, who are erect- 
ing an elegant and substantial building on La- 
fayette-Place, corner of Fourth-street; and one 



I 



OF NEW- YORK. 109 

in Houstoun-street, corner of Forsyth, under the 
care of Rev. Mr. Bourne. 

The present pastor of the Market-street 
church is Dr. Ferris, whose predecessor was 
the Re\^ Wm. M'Murray, D.D., now deceased. 
The Rev. Dr. Baldwin officiates in the church 
in Houstoun-street, corner of Greene, and Mr. 
Demarest in the one in King-street. 



CHAPTER TWELFTH. 

THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 

JJncle. We now come to speak of the esta- 
blishment and history of the Episcopal Church, 
in New- York city. 

John. Is this older than the Presbyterian 
church. 

Uncle. By some years. The established 
Church of England, you know, was Episcopal; 
and consequently, most of the colonial govern- 
ors that were sent out here, being friends and 
members of that church, were anxious to have 
public worship after their own accustomed 
manner. The Dutch, however, as I have told 
you before, were not disturbed in their use of 
the only church in the city, until the year 



110 TIfE CHURCHES 

1791, when King's chapel was erected. This 
served as a place of worship for the Episcopa- 
lians for five or six years. When Governor 
Fletcher arrived in 1692, he was very solici- 
tous for the erection of another church. Ac- 
cordingly, we find on the records of the Council 
of November 8ih, 1605, a resolution for having 
an estimate made of the expense of building a 
wooden church, sixty feet long, and fifi}^ feet 
wide. But their plan being altered in 1696, a 
stone building was erected on the main street 
of the city, and was called the " English 
Church,'" aftervvards known as the "Trinity." 
We now should say that the Trinity Church 
stood between Broadway and Lumber-street.; 
but Lumber-street, then, was no more than the 
bank of the Hudson river, as you will see by 
reading this passage from Mr. Smith's notes. 

John. " Trinity Church stands very pleasant- 
ly upon the banks of Hudson river, and has a 
large cemetry on eaph side, enclosed in the front 
by a painted paled fence. Before it a long walk 
is railed off from the Broadway, the pleasantest 
street of any in the whole town."' 

Uncle. This long walk, opposite the church, 
which he mentions, was after\yards familiarly 
known to the British soldiers as "the Mall." 
The building was dedicated to the public worr 
ship of God on the 6th of February, 1697, when 
divine service was performed in it, for the first 
time, by the Rev. Mr. Vesey, rector of the parish. 



\ 



OF NEW-YORK. Ill 

Mr. Veseywasthe first regular clergjTnan sent 
over here as " rector." His original commission 
from the Bishop of London is still preserved, 
and can be seen among the manuscript papers 
of the New- York Historical Society, at their 
rooms in this city. In the year 1703, the City 
Corporation granted the ground on which the 
Trinity Church stood, to be a burial place for 
the inhabitants of the city forever ;" and the pro- 
ceeds of the burial charges were to go to the rec- 
tor. The original church was a small, square 
edifice, but afforded sufficient accommodations 
to the congregation, till the year 1735, when it 
was enlarged by an addition at the east end. In 
1737, it was again augmented to the size in 
which it appeared at the time of its destruction, 
Joh'/i. What! was the Trinity Church destroy- 

Uncle. Yes ; you may add it to the list of 
churches in this city destroyed by that all-de- 
vouring element, j^r^i. On the night of the 20th 
of September, 1776, when the British soldiery 
held possession of the citj^ after the evacuation 
of it by the American troops, a fire broke out in 
the neighbourhood of Old-Slip, which was then 
a disreputable part of the city, and spread with 
such violence and fearful rapidity, as defied all 
the efforts of the inhabitants and soldiers to ar- 
rest its progress. It spread westerly towards 
Broadway, consuming every thing in its course. 
Neither did this wide street successfully hinder 



112 THE CHURCHES 

its progress. The sparks lighting on the shin- 
gle roofs of the opposite houses, set them oxi fire, 
and thus the conflagration continued. The 
Lutheran Church, which then stood where 
Grace Church now stands, and the Trinity, both 
fell Wctimstothe flames. This dreadful fire of 
1776 ended only when it reached the College 
Green. There were in all 493 houses consumed. 
This fire extended over more ground than any 
other that has ever occured in New-York. It 
destroyed much less valuable property, however, 
than the great fire of 1835. The venerable 
" Trinity," thus burnt in 1776, was a very 
spacious building, being 1 46 feet long, including 
the chancel and tower, 72 feet wide, and orna- 
mented with a steeple 180 feet high. One of 
the main entrances appears to have been ©n the 
side fronting the river, and over it was an inscrip- 
tion in Latin, a translation of a part of which 
Henry may read to us. 

Henry. " This temple of the Trinity was 
founded inthe eighth year of our most illustrious, 
and supreme lord, William the rikiird, by the 
grace of God, king of Britain, Scotland, France, 
and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, 6lc., and the 
year of our Lord 1696." 

Uncle. Mr. Smith, whom I have mentioned 
before, wrote his History of New-York about 
fifteen or twenty years before the great fire, 
and from it you may read a short d^escription 



OF NEW-YORK. 113 

which he gives of the interior of the old 
Trinity. 

John. " The church is, within, ornamented 
beyond any other place of public worship among 
us. The head of the chancel is adorned with 
an aUar-piece, and opposite to it at the other end 
of the building, is the organ. The tops of the 
pillars which support the galleries are decked 
with the gilt busts of angels Avingtd. From 
the ceiling are suspended two glass branches, 
and on the walls hang the arras of some of its 
principal benefactors. The aisles are paved 
with flat stones." 

Uncle. From this we can get a very good 
idea of the internal appearance of the Trinity, 
before its destruction in 1776. From its size 
and height, it must have been considered, then, 
and would be now, a 7ioble structure. The 
style of its architecture was simple; the win- 
dows were arched in the Gothic manner, and 
the glass set in lead ; it was shaded by lofty 
trees, and surrounded on every side by the 
graves and monuments of the dead. Thus it 
must have presented a pleasing and impressive 
sight to the passer-by, or the stranger, before its 
enclosure had been enterea by the ruthless ty- 
rant, its trees withered by the scorching heat, 
its walls blackened with smoke, and its tall 
Steeple had bowed a victim to the flames. 

John. In what year was it rebuilt, sir? 

Vricle. It lay in ruins during the remainder 



114 THE CHURCHES 

of the war, and for some years after the con- 
clusion of peace between Great Britain and 
America ; when it was raised again from its 
ashes in 1790. This new building, you know, 
is the present Tiinity Church. It is 104 feet 
long, 72 wide, and has a steeple 200 feet high. 
The house is less in length, but the steeple 
higher, than the old one. 

Henry. Who were some of the clergymen 
of this church? '■ 

Uncle. The Episcopal clergymen here, be- 
fore the American war, were considered as mis- 
sionaries, and were sent out by the English 
Society for "Propagating the Gospel in Foreign 
Parts," being ordinarily ordained for the woik 
by the Bishop of London. The first of these 
who officiated in the Trinity Church, Mr. Ve- 
sey, we have already noticed. He was rector 
from 1696 to 1746. His successor was the 
Rev. Mr. Henry Barclay, who had formerly 
been a missionary among the Mohawks. He 
came as rector to the Trinity Church in the 
year 1746, and remained till 1764. His salary 
was 100/. a-year, "levied upon all the other 
clergy and laity in the city, by virtue of an act 
of Assembly procured by Governor Fletcher." 
He was for some time assisted in his labours by 
Dr. .Johnson and Mr. Auchmuty. 

The Rev. Samuel Auchmiity, D. D., filled 
the rectorship from 1764, till 1777. His suc- 
cessor was the Rev. Charles Inglis, D. D., (after- 



OF NEW-YORK. 115 

wards Bishop of Nova Scotia,) from 1777 till 
1783. After him, again, came the Right Rev. 
Samuel Provost, from 1783 to 1800; and the 
Right Rev. Benjamin Moore, D. D., fiom 1800 
to 1816. Dr. Johnson was the first President 
of Columbia College, and came to this city 
from Strrtford, Ct., in 1754. 

Henry. In what year, sir, was Columbia 
College"huih? 

Uncle. The first stone was laid on the 23d of 
August, 1756. Dr. Johnson remained in the 
city until 1763, when he returned to Stratford, 
Before his leaving, however, the Episcopalians 
had very much increased; so much so as to re- 
quire the erection of another church. This in- 
crease was occasioned partly by the arrival of 
emigrants from Europe, but principally by pro- 
selytes from the Dutch churches. The Dutch, 
who had always been accustomed to preaching 
in their native tongue, were very loth that their 
ministers should preach in the English language ; 
and by this means they lost a great many fami- 
lies /rom their congregations. The 3^oung peo- 
ple, especially, were very averse to the Dutch, 
and fond of the Eno-lish lano-uag-e. And in the 
year 1752, though the old Trinity would con- 
tain two thousand hearers, a new church was 
erected. This was called St. George's Chapel, 
and was a neat edifice, faced with brown stone 
and tiled. 



10 



116 THE CHURCHES 

John. The same that we now call by that 
name, in Beekman-street, I suppose. 

Uncle. It occupied the same spot, but is not 
the same building'; for you must know that St. 
George's Chape], too, has been once destroyed 
by fire. About tAventy years ago, it was burnt 
to the ground. You will notice that the pre- 
sent St. George's Chapel has a short steeple, 
like a tower. But the old one had a very lofty 
steeple, it being 175 feet high. The spot it oc- 
cupied was then called " Chapel Hill;' and the 
street in front of it. Chapel-street. The neiglv 
bourhood about it was then a new^ crowded, 
and ili-built part of the city. At the dedication 
of St. George's Chapel, which did not take place 
till July 2d, 1756, the mayor of the city, accom-^ 
panicd by the recorder, aldermen, common 
council, and other distinguished gentlemen, and. 
attended by f]ft3'-t\vo charity scholars, proceed- 
ed, in order, from the City-Hail to the church. 
The Rev. Mr. Barclay preached on the occa- 
sion, what the public papers of the day speak of 
as an "excellent sermon," from the text, " Re- ' 
verence my sanctuary ; I am the Lord ;" found 
in Leviticus 26th chap. 2d verse. You may 
take the Bible, John, and read to us the whole 
verse in which it occurs. 

John. Lev. xxvi. 2. — " Ye shall keep my 
Sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary : I am 
Xhe Lord." 



OF NEW-YORK. 




CHAPTER THIRTEENTH. 



THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH CONTINUED. 

Uncle. In our last conversation about the 
Trinity Church, I gave you some account of 
its destruction, and of the great fire which 
desolated the city at that time. Do you 
remember the year in which these events 
happened? 

Henry. It was in the beginning of the revo- 
lution, in 1776, I believe. 



118 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. Yes, you are right. And since our 
last conversation, through the kindness of Mr. 
Dun lap, who wrote for us, last year, the inter- 
esting little History of New-York, I have been 
able to procure for you a view of the Trinity 
Church, representing it in ruins as he saw it 
after the fire, in 1777. 

Two years before, Mr. Dunlap had beheld it 
in all its beauty ; but now its antiquated altar, 
and costly chancel, its winged angels, orna- 
mented pillars, and high steeple, were all gone ; 
and nothing but heaps of broken stones, and 
blackened walls, were to be seen. But to go 
on with our history. 

In one of our former conversations, you will 
recollect, I mentioned to you that after the 
American revolution, the constitution of the 
Protestant Episcopal Church, on this side of 
the waters, was materially changed. This was 
owing to the great change which the United 
States experienced in her political relations to 
the mother country. The members, and pro- 
perty holders, of the Episcopal Church, had 
been, mostly, the avowed and open enemies of 
the x4.n)erican cause, and friends and defenders 
of the British authorities in the colonies. Con- 
sequently, before the conclusion of peace in 
1783, many of these fled the country; and the 
Protestant Episcopal Church began to rise 
again, on a new foundation. A general eccle- 
siastical convention of delegates, from all the 



OF NEW-YORK. 119 

States, was held at New-York, in October, 1784, 
which, after proposing a constitution for the 
Protestant Episcopal Church in the United 
States of America, adjourned and met again at 
Philadelphia, in 1785. At this convention of 
1785, the proposed constitution was called up, 
and adopted. I said that the constitution of the 
church was materially altered. The main fea- 
ture of this alteration, you will find embodied in 
the preamble to the constitution, which one of 
you may now read to us. 

John. " Whereas, in the course of Divine 
Providence, the Protestant Episcopal Church 
in the United States of America is becom.e in- 
dependent of all foreign authority, civil and ec- 
clesiastical : And whereas, &c. 

Uncle. Here it is; ''independent of all fo- 
reign autliorily, civil and ecclesiastical ;" this 
explains the nature of the change. Before, they 
were under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of 
London ; now they Avere ''independent.''^ Be- 
fore, the bishops of the church were called 
" my lord," and enjoyed temporal authority ; 
but now, they merely bore the title of " bishop." 
And in the address of the convention to the 
bishops of England, requesting the conferment 
of the Episcopal character upon those chosen 
for that purpose, this was particularly noticed; 
as you will see by this extract. 

Henry. " And be it recommended to this 
church, in the states here represented, to pro- 
10* 



120 THE CHURCHES 

vide, that their respective bishops may be call- 
ed ' The Rig-ht Rev. A. B., Bishop of the Pro- 
testant Episcopal Church in C. D.,' and as 
bishop, nnay have no other title ; and may not 
use any such style as is usually descriptive of 
temporal power and precedency." 

Uncle. An address, .embodying principles 
simihr to these we have noticed, was trans- 
mitted by this association to the archbishops 
and bishops of the Church of England, inquir- 
ing whether an ordination of bishops for this 
country might be efTected there; to which an 
afhi'mative answer was returned. According- 
ly, at the recommendation of the convention of 
New- York, the Rev. Dr. Samuel Provost, and 
the Rev. Dr. William. White, at the recom- 
mendation of the convention of Pennsylvania, 
w'ere duly consecrated bishops of the churches 
in their respective states. So that the Rev. 
Samuel Provost, D. D., rector of Trinity Church, , 
was the first bishop of the diocese of New- 
York. 

In 1789, Bishop Provost was assisted \n 
his pastoral office over the Trinity Church, by 
the Rev. Abraham Beach, D. D., and the Rev. 
Benjamin Moore, D. D. The Rev. J. Leam^ 
ing, D.;D., resided in the city for some years, 
though not as a settled rector. In 1795, the 
name of the Rev. John Bisset appears on the 
list, as an assistant minister of Trinity Church. 
In the year 1801, Bishop Provost, induced by 



OF NEW-YORK. 121 

ill-health, some afflictions in his family, and an 
ardent wish to retire from all public employ- 
ment, gave notice to the General Convention, 
then in session at Trenton, New Jersey, of his 
intention to leave his office as bishop of the 
diocese of New-York, and of his resignation 
already tendered to a church convention of that 
state. To this proposition, however, the Gene- 
ral Convention were not prepared to accede, 
though willing to provide Dr. Provost an as- 
sistant in the duties of his bishopric, as you will 
see by reading this extract from the minutes of 
the house of bishops. 

Henry. "While the house of bishops sym- 
pathize most tenderly with their brother Bishop 
Provost, on account of that ill-health, and those 
melancholy occurrences which have led to the 
design in question, they judge it to be incon- 
sistent with the sacred trust committed to them, 
to recognize the Bishop's act as an effectual re- 
signation of his episcopal jurisdiction. Never- 
theless, being sensible of the present exigencies 
of the church of New- York, and approving of 
their making provision for the actual discharge 
of the duties of the episcopacy, the bishops of 
this house are ready to consecrate to the office 
of bishop, any person who may be presented 
to them with the requisite testimonials from the 
General and State Conventions; and of whose 
religious, moral, and literary character, due sat- 
isfaction may be given." 



122 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. Accordingl}^ at the recommendation 
of the State Convention of New-York, the Rev, 
Benjamin Moore, D. D., then rector of Triniry 
Church, was consecrated bishop of the New- 
York diocese, in conjunction with Bishop Pro- 
vost, in St. Michael's Church, Trenton, on the 
1 1th of September, 1801. The house of bishops 
were explicit in their declaration, that they 
should consider the new bishop only as coad- 
jutor bishop, during Dr. Provost's life, although 
competent to all the episcopal duties. In this 
year also, the Rev. John Henry Hobart and 
the Rev. Cave Jones, appear as assistant minis- 
ters of Tiinit}^ Church. 

John. Mr. Hobart was afterwards bishop ; 
was he not, sir ? 

Uncle. Yes; consecrated in 1811. In 1804, 
the Rev. William Harris was rector of St. 
Mark's Church, Bowery, and the Rev. Joseph 
Pilmore, rector of Christ's Church, which then 
stood in Ann, but afterwards in Anthony-street, 
near Broadway, Dr. Pilmore was from Eng- 
land ; he began preaching in this city as a Me- 
thodist, but finally became an Episcopalian. 
He afterwards removed to Philadelphia, where 
he died. The names of Rev. Thomas Lyell, 
rector of Christ's Church, and Rev. George 
Strebeck, rector of St. Stephen's Church, appear 
in the printed list of 1808. In 1811, owing to 
the flourishing state of the church in the diocese 
of New-York, the increase of the bishop's 



OF NEW-YORK. 123 

duties, and the bodily infirmities of Bishop 
Moore, it was deemed absolutely necessary that 
another assistant bishop should be appointed. 
And at the request of the Convention of the 
State of New-York, the Rev. John Henry 
Hobart was duly consecrated to the office of 
assistant bishop, by the General Convention, 
assembled in Trinity Church, New-York, May 
29th, 1811. 

Jokn. Was Bishop Provost still alive? 

Uncle. Yes, and assisted in the services of 
consecration. So that there were now no less 
than three bishops in the diocese of New-York 
at one time. In this year also, we find the 
names of several nevv ministers in the city; 
viz. Reverends Nathaniel Bo wen, rector of 
Grace Church; Thomas Y. How, assistant min- 
ister of Trinity Church ; and Rev. Richard C. 
Moore, D. D., rector of St. Stephen's Church. 
Dr. Moore, in 1814, was consecrated bishop of 
the diocese of Virginia, and removed thither. 
In this year, the printed list shows us the fol- 
lowing accession to the former number of min- 
isters in the city of New-York ; viz. Reve- 
rends William Berrian, assistant minister of 
Trinity; John Brady, assistant minister, and 
John Kewley, M. D., rector of St. George's ; 
Benjamin 1\ Onderdonk, assistant minister 
of Trinity, and Ralph Wiiliston, rector of Zion 
Church. 



124 THE CHURCHES 

Henry. Mr. Onderdonk is the present bishop, 
I believe ? 

Uncle. Yes; and you will notice that all the 
four bishops who have been over this dio- 
cese, were ministers at the Trinity Church in 
this cit}^, before their consecration to that 
office. 



CHAPTER FOURTEENTH. 

EPISCOPAL CHURCH CONTINUED. 

Uncle. St. Paul's was the third Episcopal 
Church built within the precincts of the city. 
The first stone was laid on the 14th of May, 
1764. 

Henry. It was built, then, before the great 
fire? 

Uncle. About twelve years before ; and 
was saved from the like fate with the Trinity 
only by the timely exertions of the neighbour- 
ing inhabitants, who, keeping the roof con- 
stantly wet, thus extinguished the sparks as 
they fell. In this they were aided by the flat- 
ness of the roof, and the railing around it. St. 
Paul's was quite in the outskirts of the city 



OF NEW-YORK. 125 

when first built. Tlie same year in which the 
foundation stone was laid, the lot on which it 
stands had been ploughed up and soioed with 
wheat. And in 1826, there was a person re- 
siding in the city, who well remembered the 
building- of the "third English Church," in the 
wheat-field. This has always been considered 
the most elegant and finished church in the 
city. It presents a fine view from the Park, 
and the appearance is very imposing, especially 
to strangers, upon the first sight. The front is 
an Ionic portico, the pediment of which con- 
tains a statue of St. Paul, in a niche, in the 
centre. 

John. St. Paul has a cane in his hand, if I 
recollect aright. What does that mean, sir ? 

Uncle. The design might have been, to sug- 
gest, to the beholder, the peculiar character of 
the Apostle. You know he was called the 
Great Apostle to the Gentiles. In this cha- 
racter he traversed the greater part of Asia, as 
it was then known, Greece, Macedonia, and all 
the other countries lying aboui the Mediterra- 
nean Sea. In these journeys he doubtless 
travelled, many a weary mile on foot, over the 
hills and mountains of those eastern countries, 
with none other earthly aid than his staff. This 
then reminds us of the perseverance and zeal 
with Avhich the first apostles of Christianity 
spread the knowledge of the truth. 

The interior of the buildinsf is finished in the 



126 THECUIIRCHES 

Corinthian order, with high columns supporting 
an arched ceiling. But here, in this old maga- 
zine, published in 1795, 1 have found a short 
description of St. Paul's, which one of you may- 
read. 

John. " The great window in front of this 
church, is adorned with the monument erected 
by order of Congress to the memory of General 
Montgomery. The pulpit and altar are de- 
signed and executed with a remarkable degree 
of taste. The steeple, which was finished last 
year, (1794,) completes the external appearance 
of the buildino-; it is something- more than two 
hundred feet high from the ground. Above 
the tower, rises a quadrangular section or story, 
of the Ionic order, with proper columns, pilas- 
ters, and pediments ; the two next sections are 
octangular, of the Composite and Corinthian 
orders, supported by columns at the angles. 
The whole is crowned with a spire. The 
church, tower, and first section of the steeple, 
are of stone : the rest is of wood. As no ex- 
pense has been spared, and the several parts 
have been directed by persons of taste and ca- 
pacity, the structure is generally esteemed pre- 
ferable to most of the kind in the United States." 

Uncle. St. Paul's, you recollect, was built 
before the Revolutionary War. Since, then, 
with the increase of the city, the number of the 
Protestant Episcopal Churches has increased 
greatly. By looking upon this map of the city 



OF NEW-YORK. 127 

you will see that the number of Episcopal 
Churches, in the immediate bounds of the city, 
is now hventy-seven, including- the French 
Church in Franklin street. You may mention 
their names and location, Henry. 

Henry, All Saints' Church, in Henry-street; 
Christ Church, Anthony-street; Church of the 
Ascension, Canal-street; Epiphany, Stanton- 
street; Grace, Broadway; St. Clement's, Amity- 
street ; St. Luke's, Hudson-stiett ; St. iMark's, 
Stuyvesant Place; St. Peter's, Twentieth street; 
St. Stephen's, Broome-street ; St. Thomas'. 
Broadway; St. John's, Varick-street ; St. Bar- 
tholomew's, Lafayette Place ; St. James', Ham- 
ilton Square; St. Timothy's, Houstoun-street, 
corner of Allen; St. Mary's, Manhattanville; 
and Zion Church, Mott-street. The others, 
sir, e.xcepting the French, you have already 
mentioned 

U'/irle. The history of the French Church, is 
full of interest, and deserves a separate consider- 
ation. 

All Saints^ Church, in Henry-street, was 
built in 1828. Mr. Haight is its })resent pastor. 
Christ's Church, was built in 1823; rector, the 
Rev. Dr. Lyell. The Church of the Ascension 
enjoys the labours of the Rev. Dr. Easlburn. 
'I'he Epiphany was begun as a missionary 
enterprise, and is sometimes known as the Mis- 
sion Church, with the Rev. L. Jones for its 
rector. The Rev. Mr. Taylor officiates in 
11 



V 

i 

128 THECHTRCKES " 

Grace Church, which was erected in 1S09. 
This has long been one of the most popular 
churches in the city. Over St. Clements, is 
settled Mr. Bayard : and Dr. Anthon, over St. 
Mark's. St. Mark's Church was founded in 
1795. The spire, which adds so much to the 
beauty of the edifice, was not raised till 1827. 

St. Peter'' s has been lately built, in a new 
part of the city ; its rector is the Rev. Hugh 
Smith. 

St. Siephero s w^s founded in 1805, is built 
of stone, and its size is 75 feet by 54 ; rector, 
Rev. Mr. Price. .| 

St. Bartholomevf s is of late erection, and is '" 
a great ornament to the upper part of the city. 
Mr. Kelly was lately the minister. 

St. T}iomas\ commenced in 1823, was fin- 
ished and consecrated in 1826. "It is made of 
stone, and in the most pure Gothic style of any 
edifice in the city. Its distinguishing features 
are the two large, angular, projecting towers at 
the northeast and southeast corners, which rise 
in undiminished proportions, to a height of 80 . 
feet, and end in pointed turrets of a dwarf size; 
also, the immense Gothic window in front, be- 
tween the towers, and occupying a large por- , 
tion of the surface; beneath this, and in each 
tower, are the entrance doors." Its rector is the 
Rev. Francis L. Hawks, D. D. 

St. Joh7i^swiis completed in 1810. It is one 
of the most magnificent churches in the country. 



OF NEW -YORK. 129 

" It is ornamented in front with a portico, and 
four columns in the Corinthian style, which 
are based on a flight of steps above the street ; 
and from the roof of the portico and church, is 
built the lofty and splendid spire, to the height 
of 240 feet. The bishop and two rectors offi- 
ciate alternately in Trinity, St. Paul's, and St. 
John's." These areat present, Bishop Onderdonk, 
and the Rev. Messrs. Schroeder, and Higbee. 
The Rev. Mr. Mills officiates in St. TimothiJ s, 
and the Rev. Mr. Forbes in St. Lukes. St. 
Liuke's vi^as erected in 1821, and has a fine ap- 
pearance from the street. St. Mary^s was 
founded in 1824. 



130 



THE CHURCHES 







CHAPTER FIFTEENTH. 



THE FRENCH CHURCH, 

Henri/. Yoii promised us, sir, a conversation 
concerning the history of the French Chuich, 
in this cit}-, of which we are somewhat anxious 
to hear. 

Uncle. I did so, and am glad to see you mani- 
fest such interest in the history of so interesting 
a people, as were the founders of the French 
Protestant Church in this city. You have 
heard more or less of their history, T know, and, 
therefore, do not wonder that you are desirous 
to learn farther concerning them. 

Henri! . Yes, we have both heard of the 



OF NEW-YORK. 131 

Huguenots; but would like to learn more con- 
cerning their settlement in this country, and 
the cause of their flight from Europe. 

Uncle. Huguenots, you will remember, was 
only another name for the reformed or Protestant 
Calvinists of France, which was first given to 
them about the year 1560. These devoted Pro- 
testants underwent a persecution from the hands 
of the Papists, with scarce aparallel, as to cruelty, 
in the history of religion, until a peace of short 
duration was obtained for them, by Henry HI. 
King of France, 1576. This peace lasted only 
ten years. Henry IV. succeeded to the throne in 
1589. This prince had been educated in the 
Protestant faith, and for a long time had been 
at the head of the Huguenot party. This proved 
an obstacle to his coronation, as king of France ; 
but sacrificing his conscience to the suggestions 
of polic}^ he finally consented to abjure his reli- 
gion ; and in 1593 publicly professed Popery, 
and owned the authority and government of 
Rome. But he did not utterly forget his old 
friends and allies, the Huguenots. By the fa- 
mous edict of Nantes, in the year 1598, he grant- 
ted to them the liberty of serving God according 
to their consciences, and a full enjoyment of 
civil rights and privileges, without persecution 
or molestation. Many other privileges were 
granted, that were not even demanded by the 
Huguenots. Thus, they lived happily, under 
the provisions of this edict, for nearly a hundred^ 
11* 



i 32 TII E C H U R C H E S 

years, when it was most cruelly revoked by 
Louis XIV. in 1685. ^I'his weak prince not on- 
ly revoked the edict of Henry, but followed up 
the revocation by a measure still more tyrannical 
and shockinfT. He addressed an express order 
to" all the reformed churches to embrace the 
Romish faith. The immediate consequence of 
this unjust and cruel proceeding was, that the 
persecuted Protestants fled the country in all di- 
rections. Mure than half a million o( these suf- 
fering people, on this occasion, turned their backs 
upon their native lanJ, to seek a home and an 
asylum in other countries, where they could 
worship God accoiding to the dictates of their 
own consciences, and enjoy that peace which 
their mother country had socruelly refused them. 
This, in the event, proved highly detrimental 
to the best interests of France, but greaUy advan- 
ta.<?eous to those countries and states where these 
industrious, skilful, and religious people settled. 
Wherever they v.ent, their influence, both as to 
religion and learninir, was good. Among other 
countries, their attention was turned towards the 
new world, and many of them found an asylum 
in the then province of New-York. The most 
wealthy s.nih'd in thecitv; others went into the 
country, and planted the town of-New Rochtdle ; 
and a few took up their abode at New Paltz, in 
Ulster County. 

Jo/ifi. How far, sir, is New Rochelle from 
New- York? 



OF NEW-YORK. 133 

Uncle. About twenty miles, in a north-easterly 
direction. Ti:iose of them who resided in Nevr- 
York soon organized a church, upon ihe princi- 
ples and model of the reformed church in their 
native land : and, by their growth and foreign 
accessions, formed a congreg-ation, said to have 
been superior, for numbers and riches, to all but 
the Dutch. Concerning those of the devout 
Huguenots who settled at New Rochelle, you, 
Flenry, may read the follovv'ing- ; which, says 
the Rev. Dr. Miller, "can be dep(nded upon, 
though received or ally from an old Huguenot 
w^oman of New Rochelle.'' 

Henry. " When the Huguenots first settled 
at New Rochelle, the oniy place of worship 
they had to attend was in New- V'oik city. They 
had taken lands on terms which required the 
utmost exertions of men, women, and children 
among them, to clear, and render tillable. They 
were therefore in the habit of working hard till 
Saturday night, spending the night in trudging 
down on foot to the city, attending worship twice 
the ne.xiday, and walking home the same night, 
to be ready for work in the morning. Amidst 
all these hardships they wrote to France, lohat 
great privileges they enjoyed /" 

Uncle. You see what a privilege they con- 
sidered it, to be permitted to meet once a-week 
their brethren, assembled in the house of God. 
They settled two ministers over this congrega- 
tion in New- York. Mr. Rou was the iirst called \ 



134 THE CHURCHES 

and is represented as having been a man of much 
learning; but of rather an unhappy temperament. 
Mr. Moulinaars, his colleague, was most distin- 
guished for his pacific spirit and unblameable 
life : he was a man of moderate abilities, but 
much beloved by his people. Between these 
two ministers, an unhappy dispute arose, about 
the year 1724. Of this, I will merely say a few 
words. It was, indeed, an unhappy affair. Mr. 
Rou was thought to have rather despised his 
fellow-labourer, and for a longtime retained his 
influence over the congregation, on account of 
the superiority of his talents for the pulpit. But, 
in this year, Mr. Moulinaars gained a majority 
in hisfavour; andanewsetof elders beingelected, 
Mr. Rou was dismissed. But Mr. William 
Burnet, a son of the celebrated bishop of that 
name, being then Governor in the colony, and a 
firm friend to Mr. Rou, by his influence, rein- 
stated that gentleman in his pastoral office. 
This caused a breach in the congregation, and 
it became divided ; a part remaining with Mr, 
Rou, but the majority leaving the church, and 
connecting themselves elsewhere. Among those 
who left it, with great reluctance, was a Mr, De- 
lancey, who was a man of wealth and influence, 
and had been a generous benefactor to the French 
church. 

Henry. Did Mr. Rou preach in the French 
language 1 

Uncle. Yes; as did his successors, even 



OF NEV/-YORK. 135 

down to the present da}-. On every Sabbath, or 
every second one, the French inhabitants of our 
city may, if tliey choose, hear the gospel preach- 
ed in their native tongue. This practice has 
been kept up, though the church would, doubt- 
less, have been much more flourishing at present, 
had the English language been introduced into 
their pulpit altogether, many years ago. The 
French church has suffered much from their 
aversion to a change, as the Dutch formerly did 
from a similar cause. The members of the 
French church have dwindled away to a very 
small number, though they have one of the finest 
church buildings in the city. 

Henry. This stands, I believe, on the corner 
of Church an-l Franklin streets. But where- 
abouts, sir, was the old one? 

U/icle. The old French church stood fronting 
on Pine-street, between that and Cedar, and near 
Nassau-street. This venorr.ble edifice you will 
now, doubtless, call to mind, as it is only five 
or six years since it was removed. It was one 
of the oldest buildings in the city, at thetmne of 
its removal. Here j^ou see a picture of it, as it 
stood a {e.\Y years ago. [Head of thii Chapter.'] 

Henry. I now recollect, it, sir. It had a large 
yard before it, on Cedar-street, as is here repre- 
sented. 

Uncle. Yes ; and the white tombstones, with 
which it was filled, betokening the abode of 
numerous dead, together with the old-fashioned 



136 THE CHURCHES 

church, crowned with its ancient quadrangular 
tower, under whose arched windows the doves 
and swallows found a safe retreat, gave the 
whole an aspect of peculiar sacredness in the 
eyes of the beholder. But, like many other 
sacred enclosures in this bustling city, it has 
been invaded by the ruthless hand of enterprise 
and improvement ; the slumbers of its dead 
have been disturbed — the church, with its old 
square tower, has been demolished — and the 
spot itself is now covered with one solid mass 
of lofty stores. 

John. In what year was the old French 
Church built? 

Uncle. In the year 1704 ; as you will see by 
the following inscription in Latin, which was 
on the front of it ; — 

^DES Sacra 
Gallor. Prot. 

Reform. 
FVNDA. 1704. 

Pemtvs 
Repar. 1741. 

A plain translation of which, is: This French 
Protestant Reformed Church was built in 
1704; and repaired withi7i in 1741. It was 
removed, I believe, in 1832, and consequently 
had stood for the period of one hundred and 
twenty-eight years. Mr. Smith, who wrote his 



I 



OF NEW -YORK. 137 

" history about the year 1750, in a note, gives a 
short sketch of the church, which Henry may 
read to us. 

Henry. " The French Church, by the con- 
tentions in 1724, and the disuse of the language, 
is now reduced to an inconsiderable handful. 
The church, which is of stone, is nearly a 
square, (the area was 70 feet long, and 50 
broad,) and plain both within and without. It 
is fenced from the street, has a steeple and a 
bell, the latter of which was the gift of Sir 
Henry Asshurst, of London. The present 
minister, Mr. Carle, is a native of France, and 
succeeded Mr. Rou in 1754. He bears an irre- 
proachable character, is very intent upon his 
studies, preaches moderate Calvinism, and 
speaks with propriety, both of pronunciation 
and gesture." 

Uncle. During the revolutionary war, this suf- 
fered, in common with most of the other churches, 
from the hands of the soldiery, being used as a 
prison. The new church wrri erected in 1832. 
The present rector is the Rev. Mr. Verren. 



138 THE CHURCHES 



CHAPTER SIXTEENTH. 

THE QUAKERS. 

Uncle. We have bern conversing somewhat 
concerning the historj^ of the Episcopal Church 
in this city; but, as wo purpose to consider the 
histor}' ot the different seels in the order that 
they appeared in the colony, we should have 
placed that of the duaUeis next to the Dutch 
Reformed. For we have abundant mention of 
them as early as the time of Governor Stuyve- 
sant. And how early was that, Htnry ? 

Henry. He gave up his government in 1664, 
I believe. 

Uncle. So that it must have been some years 
before 1664 that the Quakers, as a religious 
sect, were first known here. It is thought that 
they made their first appearance in 1657. In 
that year five persons, by name Robert Hod- 
son, Christopher Hoidcn, H. Norton, JVIary 
Witherhead, and Doratha Waugh, are said to 
have arrived at New- York, then called New 
Amsterdam. The last two were put into a 
dungeon for declaring their piinciples in the 
street. Robert Hodsoii ^vent to Hempstead, on 
Long-Island, where, holdinga meeting publicly, 
he was apprehended by order of the governor of 



OF NEW- YORK. 139 

New Amsterdam, as were also two women ; all of 
whom received punishment from the governor. 
Robert Hodson was treated like a common 
felon. First he was led about the streets, "at 
the cart's tail," with his hands pinioned behind 
him ; then beaten with a rope till he fell ex- 
hausted; and afterwards he was set at the wheel- 
barrow to work at hard labour. Such treat- 
ment was continued until Governor Siuyvesant 
was prevailed upon by his sister to let him go 
free. 

JoJm. How could the good Peter Stuyvesant 
be so cruel? 

Uncle. There is much allowance to be made 
for him. You know that the peaceable Qua- 
kers had been persecuted in all the colonial set- 
tlements in North America, Rhode Island ex- 
cepted ; and Governor Stuyvesant went no far- 
ther in the work of persecution than our other 
good governors, especially those in the New 
England colonies. Besides this, all officers 
of the Dutch government in the colony, in 
taknig their oath of allegiance, had to pledge 
themselves to "maintain the Reformed religion, 
in conformity with the word of God, and the 
decree of the Synod of Dordrecht." This fa- 
mous synod, which was convened during the 
years 1618 and 1619, laid strict requisitions 
upon all governors, and other rulers. With 
this in our view, we can more easily account 
for the appearance of a persecuting spirit in the 
12 



140 THE CHURCHES 

conduct of Governor Stuyvesant. Many others 
of this society, who removed from New Eng- 
land, were treated by him with severity. Per- 
sons were made liable to fines for lodging a 
Quaker even one night. Though their num- 
ber was still small, yet they continued to hold 
their regular meetings in the face of all opposi- 
tion; and for the want of a more suitable place, 
they were accustomed to assemble in a wood 
between Flushing and Jamaica, on Long Island, 
But here also they were wrongfully disturbed^ 
and apprehended by order of the governor. 
Among the rest thus apprehended, was one 
John Bowne, an inhabitant of Flushing, who 
was treated with more than usual severity, and 
sent to Holland for trial. His story is interest- 
ing, and somewhat as follows: — Being per- 
suaded by his wife to attend one of their meet- 
ings, he was struck by their serious deportment, 
and manifest desire to worship God in sincerity, 
embraced their principles, avowed himself one 
of their number, and gave his own house for 
them to meet in. In consequence of this, he 
was apprehended and taken under guard to 
New Amsterdam, where, after suffering much, 
and making no promise to discontinue the meet- 
ings at his house, he was, in 1662, sent as a pri- 
soner on board of a ship-of-war to Holland. 
But, through contrary winds, he was landed in 
Ireland, and permitted to pass through that 
country and England, on engaging to appear 



OF NEW-YORK. 141 

in due time in Holland. This promise he 
faithfully fulfilled, and thus gave them a noble 
example of truth and honesty. But his judges 
there, finding him steadfast to his opinions of 
religious duty, at length set him at liberty. 
Soon after this he returned home, and found on 
his arrival the government in the possession of 
the English. He saw also the Dutch governor ; 
who, it is said, made an acknowledgment to him 
for his cruelty in the treatment inflicted upon 
him by his order. 

Henry. Were the English governors more 
friendly to the Gluakers than the Dutch had 
been % 

Uncle. Yes, much more ; so that their num- 
bers increased very rapidly after the surrender. 
In 1692, a yearly meeting was held at Flush- 
ing; which shows that they were in a flourish- 
ing state. In 1696, a meeting-house was built 
in New- York. This was only three years after 
the building of the first Garden-street Church, 
and consequently was the third house erected 
for public worship without the walls of the fort. 

John. Whereabouts was this Quaker meet- 
ing-house, sir? 

Uncle. It was probably the same building 
that we find on a map of the city, published in 
1728, standing on a narrow street which con- 
nected Maiden-lane with Crown, now Liberty- 
street. 

This church was outside of the walls of the 



L 



142 THE CHURCHES 

city, which once run along- where Wall-street 
now is, and being afterwards sold to Mr. Grant 
Thorburn, was for many years used by him as 
a seed sfore. The store you undoubtedly re- 
collect, as it has been pulled down only a year 
or two. 

Henri/. Where did they build after this? 

Uacle. In Pearl-street, on the block between 
Franklin-square and Oak-street. There the 
Q,uaker meeting-house, for many years, stood 
separated from the bustling street by its neat 
wooden railings. During the revolutionary war, 
it suffered in common with the other non-Episco- 
pal churches, and was used by the British army 
as a hospital. When this property was sold, 
the society again built in Rose-street. Besides 
this, the Friends now have meeting-houses in 
Hester, Henry, Carmine, and Downing streets. 

Henry. Why, sir, did the British army dis- 
turb the Quakers, when they were so peaceable? 

Uncle. They disturbed them merely because 
they were peaceable. They wished to see them 
take up arms as loyalists. But the Quakers, 
generally speaking, remained true to th^ir prin- 
ciples o{ peace. So early as 1675, we find that 
a considerable number of inhabitants at Oyster 
Bay, L. I., being Quakers, refused to take up 
arms and watch agjinst the Indians, for which 
fines and taxes were levied upon them. But, in 
1755, "the people called Quakers" advanced 
largely from their substance in aid of the colonial 



OF NEW-YORK. 143 

army against the French. This was an excep- 
tion to their general rule. In the American re- 
volution we again find them neutral. And this was 
peculiarly a time of trial to them. For, to attend 
their yearly, and other meetings, they had not 
only to pass the lines of the contending parties, 
but over ground rendered still more perilous by 
hordes of desperate men, who, for plunder's sake, 
frequented that part of the country that lay be- 
tween the American and British armies, and so 
long known as the Neutral Ground. 

From these lawless men, the Quakers expe- 
rienced frequent abuse, and robberies. On these 
very grounds the meetings were frequently held, 
as at Marmaroneck, Purchase, and Shapaqua. 
Also, when the yearly meeting was held on 
Long Island, the menibers who came from a dis- 
tance were liable, in sroinor within the British 
lines, to be taken up and imprisoned, and no less 
so on their return. Accordino-ly, on their return 
from the yearly meeting of 1777, eight persons 
were apprehended, and imprisoned for several 
months in what was called the " Fleet Prison," 
lying at Esopus creek, in Hudson river. Many 
others met with losses and abuse, in going to 
and from the yearly meeting, but principally 
from the lawless men on the neutral ground. 
And indeed, when the nature and circumstances 
of the wa(, a/id the relative situation in which 
the contending armies were placed, are taken 
into consideration, it is evident, as the Q,uakers 
12* 



144 THE CHURCHES 

themselves assert, that an indulgence and liberty 
were granted to them, hardly to have been ex- 
pected. 

Before we take leave of these peaceable peo- 
ple, I will just mention something about which 
you may inquire, should you ever be at the 
town of Flushing, L. I. There were stand- 
ing in that place, in the year 1800, two large 
Oik trees, under which George Fox, the great 
founder of the sect of Quakers, or Friends, 
preached, during his visit to this country about 
the year 1670. When they were once in 
danger of being cut down, Mr. John Bowne, 
perhaps a descendant of the person of the same 
name whom we have noticed above, agreed to 
pay the market price of the wood to the owner, 
in order that they might be spared. Someday, 
perhaps, you miiy have an opportunity of in- 
quiring concerning these trees. 

John. Who were some of their ministers, sir ? 

Uncle. Ah ! they have no regularly educated 
and ordained clergymen, as we have, John. 
And this is one of their chief errors. They 
have no pastors, entirely devoted to the work of 
religion, to ''take care of the church of God,'^ 
as St. Paul expresses it; and none to whom his 
other words of inspiration might be applied, 
" If a man desire the office of a bishop, he de- 
sireth a good work." They profess to found 
their practice on this passage of Scripture; — 
" Freely ye have received^ freely give,'' 



OF NEW-YORK. 145 



CHAPTER SEVENTEENTH. 

THE LUTHERAN CHURCH. 

Uncle. One of the earliest sects of Christians 
that appeared in tiie city, after the surrender of 
Governor Stuyvesant, in 1664, was that of the 
Lutherans. The terms, you recollect, on which 
the Dutch governor capitulated were extreme- 
ly favourable, not only to those of his own sect, 
but to those also of every denomination ; for 
they were to have "freedom of conscience'' in 
reo-ard to matters of relio^ion, and to be free from 
restraint in reference to their mode, time, and 
other peculiarities of worship. Many of the 
Dutch inhabitants were undoubtedly Lutherans 
at the time of surrender ; but their numbers ap- 
pear to have rapidly increased after these favoura- 
ble terms in regard to faith were published by 
Governor Nicolls, as an encouragement for set- 
tlers. Indeed, so great was the number of Lu- 
therans at that time, that the very next year after 
the English flag had been displayed from the 
heights of Fort Amsterdam, they petitioned for 
liberty to send to Germany a call for a regular 
pastor. This petition, of course, Governor 
Nicolls granted, and in February, 1669, two 
years after Colonel Nicolls had left the govern* 



146 THECHUIICHES 

merit, the Rev. Jacobus Fabricius arrived in 
the colony, and began his ministrations. 

John, O, I remember his name : he had some 
difficuhy with the o-overnor, I thin.k 3^011 said. 

U/icIe. All the difficulty was, that being ac- 
cused of disturbing the peace of one of the 
southern colonies by preaching his peculiar 
sentiments, he was, in consequence of this, re- 
proved by ihe governor, and his liberty of leav- 
ing the bounds of the colony, was at first some- 
\vhat restricted; and afterwards he was prohib- 
ited altogether from preaching: and to show 
you what customs obtained in those days, was I 
believe the only reason why I mentioned the 
circumstance at all. However, it is not much 
to be won4ered at, considering the state of the 
times then, the recency of the reformation, and 
the relics of Papacy then to be found both in the 
forms and doctrines of the Lutheran church, 
that an outcry was made by American colonists 
against ils zealous preachers. Although Luthey 
was looked upon by all Protestant reformers as 
the great and worthy leader of all opposition to 
the ghostly power of the Pope, still some of his 
peculiar doctrines were esteemed by them to be 
las fatally erroneous and heretical as those held 
by the " Mother Church" herself It is not un- 
.charitable towards our Lutheran brethren, to 
say. (because it is a fact acknowledged by all,) 
that of all the Protestant churches, the Lutheran 
jrnost nearly resembles the Roman. Hence it 



OF NEW -YORK. 147 

was, I think, that Mr. Fabricius, and others 
among the early Lutheran clergymen in the 
colony, met with some trouble and opposition. 
But you must not imagine from these remarks, 
that the tide of opposition was setting strongly 
against the Lutherans ; rather the contrary. 
For in the year that Mr. Fabricius arrived, on 
the 13th of October, 1669, Lord Lovelace, who 
had succeeded Colonel Nicolls in the govern- 
ment, publicly proclaimed his having received 
a letter from his master, the Duke of York, ex- 
pressing his pleasure that "the Lutherans 
should be tolerated, &c." And this was a great 
deal for the Popish duke to declare; for after- 
wards, you will remember, when he occupied 
the throne of England as James II, he man- 
ifested his violent opposition to every thing 
that savoured of Protestantism, and earnestly 
endeavoured to establish Romanism in the 
kingdom. Lutherans, Presbyterians, and Epis- 
copalians, were all the same in his eye, so long 
as they refused allegiance to the Pope, and all 
alike felt the weight of his tyrannical bigotry, 
when a succession to the throne and sceptre of 
England gave him an occasion for the display 
of that spirit, the exercise of which finally cost 
him his crown and his kingdom. 

Henri/. You mentioned, sir, that the Luthe- 
rans, of all Protestants, differ least from the 
Romish Church. I should like to know how 
they differ from their fellow Protestants. 



148 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. A few words will explain this. 
Since the age of the good Luther, the creed of 
his followers has undergone many minor 
chano;es, though the main features of their sys- 
tematic principles remain the same. Luther, 
you know, was educated a Romanist, cloistered 
in one of their monasteries, ordained a priest m 
their church, and had no one to instruct him in 
the principles of Protestantism, and to teach 
him that the Romish church was corrupt in 
doctrine and deed, and needed reformation. 
How wonderful, then, that he should have been 
a reformer at all ! It would have been more 
wonderful still, had he come out so entirely 
free from the fauhs of Popery, as afterwards did 
Calvin, Knox, and others. But to answer your 
question more directly, Henry; the disciples of 
Luther ditTer from mobt other Protestants, in 
the following particulars ; they affirm that the 
body and blood of Christ are materially pre- 
sent in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, 
though in an incomprehensible manner ; and 
they maintain some of the old religious rites 
and ceremonies of the Papists; though in later 
years their public teachers have indulged in the 
liberty of dissenting from the less important 
symbols, and creeds, and sectarian principles of 
their founder. The Lutherans were formerly 
very strict in relation to the principles of their 
faith, and their religion made a part of their 
civil polity, which, perfiaps, benefitted the 



OF NEW-YORK. 149 

cause of Christianity much in those early times 
of reformation ; but there can now be but little 
doubt that vital Christianity has flourished more 
among the Lutherans, since they have adopted 
the general sentiment that Christians are ac- 
countable to God alone for their religious be- 
lief, and that errors in faith are not crimes pun- 
ishable by the magistracy of the country. But 
we must return to the history of the Lutheran 
church in New- York. We have seen that they 
were the next to the Dutch Reformed, in settling 
a minister, and consequently the history of their 
church begins farther back than any other in the 
city, the Dutch Reformed and the Friends ex- 
cepted. 

John. How long did Mr. Fabricius preach 
here, before he was silenced by the governor % 

U/icie. From the year 1669 to 1675; just 
six years. In 1675 he was forbidden to preach 
any more in the province, either in public or 
private. This severity was induced by the im- 
prud.nciesof the rev. gentleman. His succes- 
sor was the Rev. Barnard us Arentius. 

Henry. Had the Lutherans a church in Mr, 
Fabricius' time? 

Uncle. No. In 1671, as we learn from 
Smith's history, Martin Hoffman, by the peti- 
tion of the minister and elders of the Lutheran 
Society, in New-York, had liberty given him 
to visit the settlements on the Delaware River, 
to solicit contributions to assist them ia building: 



150 THE CHURCHES 

a church. But from results, it appears that he 
was not successful in his mission. 

The church in the fort, was, then, the only 
one in the city. But about the year 1710, their 
numbers being very much increased by the ar- 
rival of about three thousand Palatines from 
Europe, under the conduct of Governor Hun- 
ter, they erected their first church. Here, 
John, on this old map of the city, see if you can 
find the location of the Lutheran Church. 

John. Yes, sir ; here it is, on the corner of 
Rector-street and Broadway. 

Henry. It was burnt down in the great fire 
of the revolution, I think you told us, uncle. 

Uncle. True ; it was burnt at the same time 
with the old Trinity. Some years before this, 
it had a narrow escape from the flames. In one 
of the old weekly papers there is a notice, that 
the " German Lutheran Church" was, in Au- 
gust, 1750, struck by lightning; which running 
down the steeple, tore off some shingles, other- 
wise injured the roof, and finally set fire to it; 
but by the rain and timely assistance, the rising 
flames were extinguished. It was never rebuilt 
after the fire in 1776, and Grace Church now 
occupies the spot. About ten years before the 
revolution, the German Lutherans built an- 
other church. Where was that, John? 

John. Is not that singular looking old build- 
ing, at the corner of Frankfort and William 
streets, the one, sir ? 



OF NEW -YORK. 



i5r 



Uncle. You are right. Here is a view 
of it, as it is still to be seen. It was built in 




I 



1766, and dedicated on the first of May, 1767* 
It was called Christ's Church. This situation 
was, then, of course, far out of town. .There 
were but a few scattering houses along on the 
13 



152 THE CHURCHES 

line of Chatham-street, then known as the 
•' High Road to Boston." ^J'he church stood 
not far from the borders of what was called 
" Beekman's Swamp," and is even at present 
sometimes known as the " Swamp Church." 

The first pastor of Christ's Church was the 
Rev. John S. Geroeck, who officiated there six 
years, and was then succeeded by the Rev, 
Frederick A. Muhlenberg, Mr. Muhlenberg 
was the pastor until the year 1776, when the 
breaking outof the war interrupted his labours. 
From this period the church was destitute of a 
regular pastor until the year 1784. But the 
buildinof was not "closed" durinof all this time. 
It was ope of the few buildings in the city saved 
from the desolating hand of the British soldiery, 
and was used by the Hessians as their place of 
worship. 

Jokji. Who were the Hessians, sir? 

Uncle. They were soldiers from Germany, 
long known in Europe for their bravery and 
hardihood, and at that time under the pay of 
England. They take their name from Hesse, 
a principality of Germany. *i hese German 
regiments had chaplains, who officiated by 
turns in the Lutheran Church. The Hessians 
were very attentive to the worship of their 
fathers when in this country, and by their liberal 
contributions to the plate on Sundays, the Lu- 
theran Church was freed from debt, and had a 
handsome surplus. They were famous for their 



OF NEW-YORK. 153 

beautiful singinjT, with which they celebrated 
the worship of God, and soothed their melan- 
choly hours. And though they sung in their 
native language, yet the Americans used fre- 
quently to assemble around their places of wor- 
ship and amusement, to listen and admire. In. 
this cemetry, many a poor stranger from Ger- 
many was buried during the long continued 
war. Hessian officers, in full military cos- 
tiime, have since been disinterred, with their 
side-arms, cocked hats, and boots. 

At the restoration of peace, in 1784, the Rev. 
Dr. J. C. Kunze, who had recently emigrated 
to Philadelphia from Germany, accepted a call 
to become the pastor of Christ Church, and 
officiated until his death, which occurred in 
July, 1807. The portrait of this venerable 
pastor, which hangs in the halls of the New- 
York Historical Society, you may perhaps 
have an opportunity of seeing. He was much 
esteemed in this city for learning and piety, 
and held, for several years, the respectable 
ofHce of professor of languages in Columbia 
College. In October of the same year, the 
Rev. F. W. Geissenhainer was installed in the 
pastoral office, and remained with his people 
until 1814, when he resigned and removed to 
Pennsylvania. His successor was the Rev. 
C. F. Schasffer, who officiated till 1822, then 
left and took charge of St. Matthew's, the Eng- 
lish Lutheran Church, in Walker-street. On 



154 THE CHURCHES 

Dr. SchaBfTer's leaving, Dr. Geissenhainer was 
]'eca]led to the old church, where he continued 
till 1830, when the congregation removed to the 
church in Walker-street, the Walker-street 
confrregation having previously removed to 
Orange-street. 

John. Had they built a church in Orange- 
street 1 

Uncle. No ; but they had purchased one 
from the " Irish Presbyterian Church," TiOW 
known as the Canal-street Church. 

Henry. Is not Dr. Geissenhainer since dead % 

Uncle. Yes. He departed this life a month 
or two ago, full of j^ears ; being at that time, 
probably, the oldest clergyman in the city. He 
came out to this country just after the close of 
the revolutionary war, being induced to emi- 
grate by the pleasant pictures of America, given 
by a Hessian soldier on his return from thence. 

Dr. Geissenhainer had an energetic and well 
disciplined mind, and was a man of extensive 
and critical knowledge on various subjects. 
He was peculiarly the friend of the 'poor, both 
by counsel and pecuniary aid, a faithful pastor, 
and a sincere Christian. And his end, like 
that of all good men, was peace, and calm sub- 
mission to the will of God. 



or NEW-YORK. 159 



CHAPTER EIGHTEENTH. 

THE JEWS. 

Uncle. We have continued our conversations 
concerning the different sects of Ciiristians so 
far, in reference to tlie date of their appearing 
in our city, and in pursuance of our plan, we 
will next turn our attention to the Jews, and the 
time of their settling here; although, as you 
know, they would consider it no privilege to be 
considered a Christian sect. 

John. That is, they are not believers ia 
Christ. 

Uncle. And not only so, but through igno- 
rance and perversion, they esteem the name of 
Christ a reproach. Nevertheless, as they bear 
so intimate and interesting a relation to the 
sacred narrative of the Bible, there is much 
interest connected with their history as a reli- 
gious sect. The first that we hear of their 
presence in the city, was about twenty years 
after the surrender by the Dutch, in 1685, when 
they petitioned the governor of the province for 
the liberty of exercising their own form of reli- 
gion. This reasonable request, the governor 
was inclined to grant; but upon referring the 
question to the mayor and aldermen of the city, 
13* 



156 THE CUHRCHES 

in common council, objections were made, and 
the following opinion thereupon was returned : 
you may read it, Henry. 

Henry. " That noe publique worship is tole- 
rated by act of assembly, but to those that pro- 
fesse faith in Christ, and therefore the Jews' 
worship not to be allowed. 

Uncle. Faith in Christ, you see, in the opin- 
ion of the rulers of the city, was the necessa- 
ry requisite for obtaining liberty to worship 
publicly as an established sect. But this state 
of things did not long remain. As rulers 
changed, opinions changed, and the Jews finally 
came to enjoy the same privilege that other de- 
nominations did. 

Henri/. In what year, sir, did they attain this 
privilege ? 

Uncle. Their synagogue in Mill-street was 
built in 1730, but it must have been a number 
of years before this that they were admitted to 
the common privilege of free worship: 1730 
was quite early, in the history of the city, for 
them to have a synagogue. It was about the 
time, you will recollect, when the first printed 
newspaper in the city made its appearance. 

Henry. Why was Mill-street so called, un- 
cle? 

Uncle. It is said that formerly there was a 
mill seat and water course there, which gave 
rise to the name of the street. And here is a 
passage relating to the subject, in Mr. Watson's 



OF NEW-YORK. 157 

collections, which one of you may give us in his 
own words. 

John. " 1 once heard from the Phillips' family, 
that in early times, when the Jews first held 
their worship there, (Mill-street,) they had a 
living spring in which they were accustomed 
to perform their ablutions and cleansings, accord- 
ing: to the riohts of their relisfion." 

Uncle. This was very convenient for the 
Jews ; and they appear to have lived as a quiet 
and peaceable body of citizens, undisturbed in 
the enjoyment of their privileges, and experien- 
cing no open oppression, until the year 1737, 
when their troubles opened afresh upon them. 
This was owing to a question of political import 
and interest, which at that day created a great 
commotion in the city. The particulars of this 
case I will not detail to you, but only enumerate 
them so far as they affected the peace and popu- 
larity of the Jews. Then, as in these times, the 
political elections were warmly contested. Two 
candidates for the seat in the Assembly were be- 
fore the citizens, supported by opposing parties. 
One party had enlisted the ftivour of the Jews, by 
which they had the prospect of gaining the elec- 
tion, while the opposition used every exertion to 
counteract their influence; and for this purpose 
they obtained, as their counsellor in the court, a 
Mr. Smith, who was then one of the most con- 
spicuous lawyers in the city. The cause of his 
clients was ultimately gained by Mr. Smith, 



^58 THK CHURCHES 

who urged the arg-umcnt that the Jews were not 
qualified electors. In point of fact, this argument 
was not valid ; but the object of the oration was 
obtained by the mere dint of his eloquence. A 
portion of the account given by Mr. Smith, the 
historian, you may read, as being a fact of much 
interest in the history of the Hebrews in this city. 
Here it is, Henry. 

Henry. " IMr. Murray (the counsel for the 
Jews) drily urged the authority of the election 
low, giving a vote to alt freeholders of compe- 
tent states, without excepting the descendants of 
Abraham, according to the flesh; and with as- 
tonishment heard a reply, which captivated the 
audience into an opinion, that the exception must 
be implied for the honour of Christianity, and 
the preservation of the constitution. The whole 
history of the conduct of England against the 
Jews vvas displayed on this occasion, and argu- 
ments thence artfully deduced against their 
claims to the civil rights of citizenship. After 
expressing the emotions of pity naturally arising 
upon a detail of their sufierings, under the avari- 
cious and barbarous policy of ancient times, he 
turned the attention of his hearers to that mystery 
of love and terror manifested in the sacrifice of 
Christ ; and so pathetically described the bloody 
tragedy at Mount Calvary, that a member cried 
out with agony and in tears, beseeching him to 
desist, and declaring his conviction. Many others 
wept; and the unfortunate Israelites were con- 



OF NEW-YORK. 159 

tent to lose their votes, could they escape with 
their lives; for some auditors of weak nerves 
and strong" zeal, were so inflamed by this oratory, 
that, but for the interpositions of their dema- 
gogues, and the voces of the house in their favour 
the whole tribe in this dispersion would have 
been massacred that very day, for the sin of their 
ancestors in crucifying Jesus of Nazareth, and 
imprecating his innocent blood upon them- 
selves and their children." Why, sir, they 
came near killinsf them! 

Uncle. So our historian informs us. And 
this singular fact goes to show us how great 
power men of eloquence have over others, and 
how the heated passions of men often hurry 
them on to deeds of violence and wickedness. 
But we should suffer no eloquence, on any oc- 
casion, to persuade us to v/hat is wrong, or 
subvert our better judgment. And if you will 
take notice, you will see that the historian re- 
fers this high transport of passion only to men 
of " weak nerves and strong zeal," — such zeal 
as was without knowledge. 

Thus the votes of the Israelites were re- 
jected, and they themselves, for a while, de- 
prived of the common rights of citizenship. 

The city records show, that in 1728, the 
Jews applied for a spot to be used by them as a 
burying ground. A lot was accordingly grant- 
ed them, 112 feet long and 50 broad, near the 
Cripple Bush or Sivamp, opposite to what is 



160 THE CHURCHES 

now Chatham-square, on Oliver-street, then, a 
long" distance out of the city. Their burial 
ground remains in the same spot still, and has 
so far escaped the disturbance which so many 
other of these sacred grounds in our city have 
met with, from the hand of enterprise and im- 
provement. 

We will now devote a moment or two to 
their synagogues. And on this subject, Henry 
may read to us the account given by Mr. Good- J 
rich, in his Picture of New- York. Here it is. ^ 
He wrote in 1828, when the synagogue in Mill- 
street was still standing. 

Henry. "The Jews' Synagogue, in Mill- 
street, built 1730, and rebuilt in 1818, is a stone 
edifice, 58 by 35 feet. The worship is here 
performed in the Hebrew language, and in the 
sam.e manner and form as in ancient times. 
Strangers are admitted, but females are all ac- 
conmiodated with seats in the gallery ; the ser- 
vice begins on Friday evening at sunset, and is 
continued on Saturday morning at ten o'clock. 
It is highly curious and impressive. The for- 
mer Rabbi, Rev. G. Seixas, here officiated for 
50 years regularly. The interior ornaments 
are elegant and costly. A lamp is kept per- 
petually burning before the ark. The ark is 
the sacred depository of the Book of the Law, 
(of which a valuable manuscript copy of great 
antiquity belongs to the congregation,) and is of 
a semicircular form, constructed in the most 



OF NEW-YORK. 161 

finished style of workmanship, of curled maple 
and satin wood, with sliding doors. The Rev. 
Mr. Peixotto is the present Rabbi. 

It is upwards of a century since the Mill- 
Street congregation was established, and few, if 
any, of tlie members then resided above Wall- 
street. The increase of our city has left few 
families in that neighbourhood, and this, with 
the great increase, and the continued arrivals 
from the continent of Europe, rendered it neces- 
sary to erect a new temple. Accordingly, a 
new synagogue has been purchased in Elm- 
street, north of Canal-street, formerly the African 
Church, and has been elegantly fitted up by the 
German and Polish Jews, whose form of prayer 
is somewhat dissimilar to the Portuguese. The 
interior, though small, is finished in a rich and 
neat style. 

A row of pillars supports the gallery, which 
has a railing of carved mahogany. The read- 
ing desk, or pulpit, which stands in the centre, 
facing the east, is of Mahogany, enclosed with- 
in a railing of fret-work. The ark, on the 
east side of the church, and facing the desk, for 
the reception of the law, is large and circular, 
of curled maple and mahogany, with a dome, 
supported with Ionic columns, with caps and 
bases. The ten commandments in front, are of 
raised golden letters, on white marble, support- 
ed by gold cornucopias. In front of the holy 
receptacle of the law, hangs a rich curtain of 



162 THE CHURCHES 

blue satin, elegantly embroidered with Hebrew 
inscriptions : — the interior of the ark opens with 
slidinof doors, and is lined with the same mate- 
rial. The centre chandelier, together with four 
smaller ones, and clusters of astral lamps over 
the gallery, with the candelabras, are richly 
finished with bronze and gold, the whole being 
splendid and in good taste." 

Uncle. This was written some years ago, 
and since then, the old Mill-street synagogue 
has been removed entirely. 

The number of synagogues, in our city, has, 
since then, been increased by one. They are 
now as follows: — one in Crosby-street near 
Spring, of w^hich Mr. Seixas is Rabbi ; the 
second in Elm-street, as noticed above, of which 
Mr. Hart is Rabbi; and the third in Centre- 
street, where Mr. Samuelson officiates. But 
while the Jews are thus well supplied with 
synagogues, it is a lamentable fact that many 
of this interesting people have so far forgotten 
the sacred claims of their own national reli- 
gion, as seldom to step their feet within the 
portals of a temple. 



\ 



OF NEW-YORK. 163 



CHAPTER NINETEENTH. 

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 

Uncle. We come now to speak of the Pres- 
byterian church in the City of New-York. 
This body of Christians, so flourishing now, 
was not known here until about the ^^ear 1706, 
Their number was then small, and having yet 
no organized church, they were in the constant 
practice of meeting in some convenient, though 
private place, where their worship was con- 
ducted among themselves : some of their own 
number taking the lead in praying, singing, 
and expounding the Scriptures. 

Henry. Where the Presbyterians of New- 
York the first known in America? 

Uncle. They were among the first, although 
the first presbyteries formed in this country 
were at Charleston and Philadelphia, near the 
year 1704. There were also several regular 
congregations of Presbyterians some time be- 
fore this. The names of those who composed 
the presbytery of Philadelphia, were, Rev. 
Francis M'Memie, John Wilson, Jedidiah An- 
drews, Nathaniel Taylor, George M'Nish, and 
Samuel Davies. The first mentioned, the Rev, 
Francis M'Kemie, visited New- York in 1707, 
14 



164 THE CHURCHES 

and was criu lly and barbarously used by Lord 
Cornbury, who wns then governor of the pro- 
vince. Lord Cornbury, as we have seen before, 
was a violent churchman, and suffered his sec- 
tarian zeal to transport him far beyond all the 
bounds of moderation and justice. 

John. We remember, sir, 3'our mention of 
his conduct towards the minister at Jamaica, 
Long Island. 

Uncle. And his base treatment of Mr. 
M'Kemie was hardly less glaring. This cler- 
gyman, on his arrival in the city, had made an 
engagement to preach in the old Dutch Church, 
in Garden-street, when he was peremptorily 
forbidden the attempt by the imperious Lord. 
Having preached, however, to a small audience, 
collected in a privcle house, in some part of 
Pearl-street, he was apprehended and confined 
by order of the governor, for two months, at 
the expiration of which, having given bail for 
his appearance at court, he was set at liberty. 
On his trial, however, he was acquitted : though 
through the prejudice of the governor and the 
court, he was not discharged until he had paid 
the whole costs of the prosecution, which 
amounted to nearly three hundred dollars; a 
heavy fine for an unoffending minister to pay, 
and cruelly imposed. But the next year, 1708, 
to the great joy of all, Lord Cornbury was re- 
moved from the government. From this time 
the Presbyterians increased very rapidly. In 



OF NEW-YORK. 165 

1716, apian was conceived of forming a regular 
Presbyterian Church, and settling a stated 
pastor. Measures were taken accordingly, and 
the Rev. James Anderson, a Scotch clergyman, 
who had been preaching at New Castle, Dela- 
ware, was called to be their first pastor. 

John. Where was their church, sir^ at that 
time? 

Uncle. They had no church-building yet: 
and for three years they met in the old City 
Hall, which stood at the corner of Wall and 
Nassau streets, fronting upon Broad-street. 
But, Dr. John Nicoll, Patrick M'Night, Gilbert 
Livingston, and Thomas Smitli, having pur- 
chased a piece of ground on Wall-street, laid 
the foundation of the new church in 1719. 
This was the first Presbyterian edifice ever 
erected in New- York, and stood on precisely 
the same site that the present Wall-street Church 
occupies. 

Henrij. Was it as large as the present one? 

Uacle. Not quite. You would be amused 
by a representation of it, that an estimable citi- 
zen of former days, Mr. David Grim, left, as it 
appeared in 1742. It was a small wooden 
building, with no steeple or bell, and with only 
three small windows on each side; much un« 
like the towering edifices that have since adorn- 
ed the spot. 

In 1721, they petitioned Colonel Schuyler, 
who then had the chief command in the colony. 



166 THi: CHURCHES 

for an act of incorporation, but were disappoint- 
ed in tlieir expectations, through the opposition 
made by the Trinity Church vestry-men. A 
similar effort was made repeatedly to obtain a 
charter, but as often proved unsuccessful ; till, 
at length, in 1774, the petition, through the 
kind interference of Governcr Tryon, was 
favourably received in England ; the charter 
was accordingly drafted, and ready for trans- 
mission, when the breaking out of the revolu- 
tionary war rendered all farther process in re- 
lation to a charter from the British government 
unnecessary. In 1722, a small number of the 
members of this church withdrew, and meeting 
statedly in a building in William-street, between 
Libeity and Pine streets, called the Rev, Jona- 
than Edwards, afterwards President of Prince- 
ton College, to be their pasior. 

Mr. Edwards accepted their call, and 
preached to them for nearly a year, when 
he returned to New-Haven ; and the sepa- 
rated body soon after connected themselves 
again with the Wall-street Church. In 1726, 
Mr. Anderson was succeeded in his pas- 
toral office by Mr. Ebenezer Pemberton, from 
Boston. 

JoJin. But what became of Mr. Anderson 
after this, sir ? 

Uncle. 1 was about to tell you, that before he 
left the New-York church, he received a call 
from a congregation in New Donnegal, Penn- 



OF NEW- YORK. 167 

sylvania ; where he settled. Mr. PembertoD 
remained a successful pastor for many years. 
It Avas in his time that Mr. Whilefield first 
visited the city, and he was the only minister in 
New- York who welcomed that minister to his 
pulpit. But his hospitality was richly repaid. 
Mr. Whitefield's labours, you know, were very 
much blessed, in the conversion of many who 
afterwards became firm and useful members of 
the Presbyterian Church. The church at this 
time, enjoyed quite an extensive revival of re- 
ligion, and the congregation was very much 
enlarged. Do either of you remember the 
date of Mr. Whitefield's first visit to New-York, 
about which we conversed some time ago ? 

Hnry. My notes say it was the year 1740. 

Uncle. Yes; and eight years afterwards, 
owing to the increase of stated worshippers, the 
church edifice was rebuih, and enlarged. And 
the Rev. Alexander Gumming, then pastor of a 
church in New-Brunswick, was in 1750 install- 
ed collegiate pastor with Mr. Pemberton. But 
these two pastors resigned about the year 1753; 
Mr. Camming from ill health, and Mr. Pember- 
ton on account of some difficulties that had 
arisen amonof his people concerning the intro- 
duction of the use of Watts' instead of Rouse's 
psalms and hymns into the public worship. 
The church were extremely sorry to part with 
either of them, but especially Mr. Pemberton, 
who had been so long their devoted pastor, and 
14* 



16S THE CHURCHES 

friend. Attempts to prevail on him to remain 
proved unsuccessful, as he considered it his duty 
to go. Henry may read to us what Mr. Smith, 
whom I have before introduced to you as the 
New- York historian, says of Mr. Pemberton, 
and the church in Wall-street. You may stop 
at the end of the fifth line of the Latin inscription. 
Henry. " Rev. Mr. Ebenezer Pemberton, was 
a man of polite breeding, fine morals, and warm 
devotion ; under whose incessant labours the 
congregation greatly increased, and was enabled 
to erect the present edifice, 1748. It is built of 
stone, railed off from the street, is eighty feet 
long, and in breadth sixty. The steeple raised 
on the southwest end, is in height one hundred 
and forty feet. In the front to the street, be- 
tween two long windows, is the following in- 
scription, gilt and cut in a black slate, six feet in 
length : — 

•'AuspicANTo Deo 

HaXC ^'^iDEM 

CULTUI DIVINO SACRA.M IH PliRPETUUM CELEBRANDO, 

A. D. MDCCXIX. 

Primo fundatam ;" &-c. 

The translation I leave to you, uncle. 

Uticl.e. It is simply this : — " Bi/ the favour of 
God, this sacred temple for the coniinual cele- 
bration of Dlviiie icorship, was first founded 
Anno Domini, 1719, ^c.;'' it afterwards states 



O F N E W - Y R K . 1 69 

the year in which it was repaired, and by whom 
it was erected. Mr. Smith, in the next para- 
graph, speaks of Mr. Gumming as a "young 
man of learning and penetration." 



CHAPTER TWENTIETH. 

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH CONTINUED. 

Uncle. The difficulties in the Preybyterian 
Church, which had occasioned Mr. Pemberton's 
removal, unhappily continued for nearly six 
years; when Mr. David Bostwick, from Ja- 
maica, Long Island, accepted their call; and 
the party still clinging to the old system of 
psalmody withdrew, and formed a new church. 
Mr. Bostwick, was installed in the summer of 
1756; and the new church were successful in 
sending a call to Mr. John Mason, of Scotland, 
who settled as their minister, in 1761. 

Henry. Where did the new congregation 
worship? 

Ihicle. In Cedar-street, between Broadway 
and Nassau-street, where they built a church, 
which stood until a few years ago; when it was 
torn down to make room for siores. Mr. Mason 
was succeeded by his son, the late Rev. John 



170 THE CHURCHES 

M. Mason, D. D., who was also the first pastor 
of the Murray-street Presbyterian Church. 
Mr. M" Cloud, was afterwards settled over this 
church, who, again, was succeeded by Dr. 
M'Elroy, the present pastor, in 1824. The 
congregation now vvorship in a beautiful edifice 
in Grand-street, near its junction with Broadway. 
But to return; the Wall-street Church, at the 
time of Mr. Bostwick's settlement, notwithstand- 
ing the dissensions concerning the psalmody, 
was very flourishing, and the congregation num- 
bered twelve or fourteen hundred souls. Mr. 
Smith has lift us a f'.'w remarks concerning Mr. 
Bostwick also, which one of you may read. 

John. " tie is a gentleman of mild. Catholic 
disposition ; and being a man of piety, prudence, 
and zeal, confines himself entirely to the proper 
business of his function. In the art of preaching, 
he is one of the distinguished clergymen in 
these parts. His discourses are methodical, 
sound, and pathetic ; in sentiment, and in point 
of diction, singularly ornamented. Redelivers 
himself without notes, and yet w^iih great ease 
and fluency of expression : and performs every 
part of Divine worship w^ith a striking solem- 
xiity.*' 

Uncle. Mr. Smith, was a cotemporary of 
Mr. Bostwick, and doubtless knew him well. 
In the course of a few years, Mr. Bostwick's 
health began to decline, and this so seriously 
interrupted his labours, that the church gave a 



OF NEW-YORK. 171 

call to the Rev. Joseph Treat, who settled as 
collegiate pastor in 1762. The illness of Mr, 
Bostwick, to the great grief of his people, soon 
ended in death. After this event, a call was 
sent to the Rev. John Rodgers, and accepted ; 
and in 1765, he commenced his pastoral labours 
in New- York. The installation sermon on 
this occasion, was preached by the Rev. James 
Caldwell, of Elizabeth Town, New-Jersey. 

Henry. Was this the Mr. Caldwell that was 
in the Revolutionary war *? 

Uncle. The same, 1 believe. He was a very 
active patriot; and so much engaged in the 
cause of liberty, that he was made a quarter- 
master in the army. He met his death, you 
will recollect, by an accidental shot. 

Henry. And his wife Vvas also killed during 
the war. 

Uncle. Inhumanly murdered; if we may 
credit history. It is said that a cruel Hessian 
discharged his musket into her bosom, as she 
sat at the window of her house with an infant in 
her arms. Thus bloody are the deeds of war. 
Let us sincerely pray for the happy time, when 
nations shall learn war no more, but when they 
shall beat their swordvS into ploughshares, and 
their spears into pruning hooks, and Christ 
shall be Lord and Judge among the nations. 

Under Mr. Rodo;ers' ministerial labours, the 
church and congregation so rapidly increased, 
that it was found necessary to provide for the 



172 THECHURCHES 

erection of another place of worship. Accord- 
ingly, in 1766, the foundation of a new meeting- 
house was laid in Beekman-street, between Nas- 
sau-street and Park Row, which was completed 
in the course of the next year. Mr. Rodgers 
preached the dedication sermon on Jan. 1st, 1768. 

Jolni. This was known as " The Brick Meet- 
ing-House,'' was it not, sir 1 

Uncle. Yes: and when first built, was so far 
in the outskirts of the city, that it was commonly 
said to be in the fields. Mr. Rodgers continued 
the successful pastor of these two churches 
until 1775, when the breaking out of the Revo- 
lution interrupted for a while his useful labours. 
The two Presbyterian, suffered in common with 
other churches, from the depredations of the 
reckless soldiery. They were completely strip- 
ped of every thing within, ornamental or useful ; 
pews, galleries, and floors, were alike torn up, 
and the whole were left, when the British evacu- 
ated the city, mere naked shells. In Nov. 1 783, 
Dr. Rodi^ers and Mr. Treat, with the sfreater 
part of their flock, returned to the city, and com- 
menced repairing their shattered edifices. In 
the meantime, by the kind invitation of the 
-Episcopal church, they worshipped in St. 
George's and St. Paul's churches. The Brick 
Church was repaired by June 1784, but the one 
■in Wali-stioet not till the succeeding June, 1785. 
They were now able to support but one pastor, 
and the pastoral relation of Mr. Treat was accord- 



OF NEW-YORK. 173 

ingly dissolved in 1784. But in August of the 
next year, another minister, Mr. James Wilson, 
from Scotland, was called and settled as a 
colleague of Dr. Rodgers. Mr. Wilson continu- 
ed his charge for three years, when, on account 
of ill health, he was at his own request dismiss- 
ed. The Rev. John M'Knight succeeded him, 
but his health failing, Mr. Samuel Miller, a 
licentiate of Lewes' Presbytery, Md., was called, 
and installed June 5, 1793. In May, 1798, a 
third church was erected, on a lot of ground, 
given for the purpose by Col. Henry Rutgers, 
at the corner of Rutgers' and Henry-streets. 
Another associate pastor, the Rev. Dr. Mille- 
doler, of Philadelphia, was now settled. In 
1809, these three churches, which had hitherto 
been associate, and under one eldership, were 
divided into three distinct churches. Dr. Rod- 
gers remained as common pastor to the Wall 
and Beekman street churches, with Dr. Miller 
as his colleague over the Wall-street one ; while 
Dr. Milledoler continued his connection, as sole 
pastor, with the Rutgers' street Church. Since 
1809, the number of Presbyterian churches has 
very much increased. How many do you count 
on this list, John 1 

John. Twenty-nine, sir. 

Uncle. An astonishing increase in thirty- 
years. They have sprung up en every side; 
and their histories, as a matter of consequence, 
are short, and of but little mterest compared 



174 THE CHURCHES 

with those of churches that have existed for one 
or two centuries. We will consider them 
separately, and in the order of time as to their 
origin, commencing of course with the oldest 
one. 

Henry. That is the Wall-street Church, 

Uncle. Which in old times, was called The 
Presbyterian Church, since for a half century it 
was the only one in the city. This church con- 
tinued to enjoy the labours of Dr. Rodgers until 
his death in 1811. In 1813, Dr. Miller was 
called to the Theological Seminary, Princeton. 
The Rev. P. M. Wbelpley was his successor; 
who, in his turn, was succeeded by the Rev. 
Wm. W. Philips, D. D., the present pastor. In 
1810, before Dr. Rodgers' death, the old build- 
ing was torn down and a new one erected. 
This was burned in the summer of 1834, but has 
again been rebuilt, with the same exterior walls, 
which were left uninjured by the fire. 

Henry. Dr. Rodgers must have been an old 
man at his death. 

Uncle. Yes: he was well advanced in life, 
having attained his eighty-third year. Among 
other faculties, his memory began to fail him 
before he gave up his pastoral duties ; so much 
so, that, as I have often heard related by one who 
recollects well the venerable pastor, he would 
frequently, in the church prayer-meetings, give 
out a favourite hymn for the second or third 
time, not knowing that he had given it out be- 



OF N EW-YORK. 175 

fore. He came to the g^rave like a shock of 
corn, fully ripe. Here, John, you may read to 
us what the Rev. Mr. Owen says of him, in his 
valuable sketch of the Presbyterian churches. 

John. " Of Dr. Rodgers it may be said, that 
he was under God the father of the Presbyterian 
Church in the city of New-York. He was a 
minister of the gospel sixty two-years, forty-six 
of which he spent in New- York. At his death, 
the pulpits of all the Presbyterian churches in 
the city were hung in mourning, and in most 
of the churches funeral sermons were delivered. 
He was the fiirst moderator of the General 
Assembly. 



CHAPTER TWENTY-FIRST, 

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH— CONTINUED. 

Uncle. We will proceed with our view of 
the Presbyterian Churches. Next to the Wall- 
street, comes which? Henry. 

Henry. The Brick Church, sir, in Beekman- 
street. 

Uncle. Or the " Brick Meeting," as it was 
sometimes familiarly called by the old inhabi- 
tants. Dr. Rodgers, who, vou know, was its 
15 



176 THECHURCHES 

collegiate pastor at the time the associate 
churches were separated, remained its sole 
pastor after that event, until his growing infir- 
mities admonished him, on the one hand, to 
remit his active labours, and the congregation, 
on the other, to seek for ministerial aid else- 
where. Accordingly, a short time before this 
venerable pastor took his final leave of earthly 
things, the Rev. Mr. Gardiner Spring, a licen- 
tiate of a Massachusetts' association, accepted 
the unanimous call of the church, and was set- 
tled as their minister in August, 1810. On the 
occasion of the ordination and installation of 
Dr. Spring, Dr. Rodgers was present, and 
*' united for the last time in the laying on of the 
hands of the Presbytery." Dr. Spring still 
continues the pastor of the Brick Church. 

John. As he was settled in 1810, he must 
have been their pastor for more than twenty- 
eight years. 

Uncle. And has held his charge for a longer 
period than any other Presbyterian minister now 
in the city. Twentj'-four new Presbyterian 
churches have sprung up around him in this 
growing metropolis, since he first began his 
labours within its bounds. 

Henry. What changes he has seen ! 

Uncle. For a year or two past, there has 
been some talk of removing the Biick Meeting 
House, to make room for a post-office building; 
but I believe that the danger is now past, and 



OF NEW- YORK. 177 

the venerable edifice will still continue to grace 
our city, and serve for many years to come, as 
a temple for the worship of the Most High. 
The third, was the Rutgers' -street Ckurch, 
dedicated on the 13th of May, 1798. Its first 
pastor was the Rev. Dr. Milledoler, who re- 
signed in 1813. In 1815, Dr. M'Clelland was 
installed as pastor, which relation he held until 
December. 1821. Ke is now professor in the 
New-Brunswick Theological Seminary- Dr. 
M'Clelland was succeeded in 1822 by the Rev. 
Dr. M'Auley, L. L. D., formerly professor in 
Union College, Schenectady, who was dismis- 
sed in 1829. The labours of Dr. M'Auley in 
this congregation were exceedingly blessed. It 
then had the largest number of communicants 
of any church in the city. The Sabbath school 
at one time embraced a thousand children. On 
his resignation, in 1829, Dr. M'Auley removed 
to Philadelphia, and settled in one of the 
churches of that city. He has since returned 
to New- York, and is now the pastor of the 
Murray-street Presbyterian Church. He is 
also president of the New- York Theological 
Seminary. The Rev. Mr. Krebs, the present 
pastor, was settled November 12, 1830. Which 
church is next in order, Henry ? 

Henry. According to the list which you 
handed us, it is the Scotch Presbyterian Church. 

Uncle. This we have already noticed. The 
next, in point of age, is the Pearl-street Church. 



178 THE CHURCHES 

This was organized about tlie year 1800, and 
was at first under the care of the Rev. John M. 
Mason, D. D., and the Rev. Robert Forrest. 
Mr. Forrest left in 1808, and was succeeded by 
the Rev. John Clark, 1810; Rev. W. W. Phil- 
lips, D. D., 1818; Rev. Walter Monteith, 1826; 
Rev. Benjamin H. Rice, D. D., 1829 ; and Rev. 
Henry A. Rowland, 1833, who still continues 
in the pastoral charge. When first built, this 
church was quite in the suburbs of the city. 
To the east of it, the ground was very low, and 
the "fresh water pond," as it was called, came 
almost up to the very spot where it stood. An 
old citizen told me, the other day, that he well 
remembered the bridges over the marsh, on 
which those, who came to church from the 
easterly parts of the town, were obliged to 
cross, and without which there could have been 
no passing there. These low places have since 
been all filled in, and are now covered with. 
houses. 

Henry. Was not this church burnt down 
last year? 

Uncle. Yes, and the congregation are now 
rebuilding on the same spot. 

John. The Canal-street Church is the next, 
sir. 

Uncle. This church was first located in 
Orange, near Grand-street, and was dedicated 
in 1809. It was afterwards commonly known 



OF NEW-YORK. 179 

as the " Irish Presbyterian Church," and its 
first pastor was the Rev. Mr. M'Neice. 

John. Why called the " Irish" Church, sir? 

Uncle. Because the congreg"ation was prin- 
cipally composed of Presbyterians from Ire- 
land. In 1825, they disposed of their old edi- 
fice, and erected a new one in Canal-street, near 
Greene. It is now known as the Canal-street 
Church. The Orange-street building is now 
used by the Evangelical Lutherans. Mr. 
M'Neice was succeeded by Mr. Henry Blatch- 
ford, in 1815 ; and he by the Rev. John Albur- 
tis. in 1819. In 1821, the Rev. Robert M'Cartee, 
D. D., succeeded Mr. Alburtis, and resigned in 
1836. 

The next is the Duane-strect Church. This 
was founded in 1806, and the edifice erected, in 
1808, on Cedar, near William-street. The 
Rev. John B. Romeyn, of Albany, was their 
first pastor. He preached until his death, 
which happened on the 22d of February, 1825. 
His successor was the Rev. Cyrus Mason, who 
was .ordained and installed in his pastoral office 
December 7th, 1826. In 1834, the congrega- 
tion disposed of their edifice in Cedar-street, and 
erected a new one at the corner of Duane and 
Church streets; whence comes their present 
name. In 1835, Mr. Mason took a dismission 
from his charge, and removed to Providence, 
R. I. ; but returning to New- York the succeed- 
ing year, he was called to fill a professorship 
15* 



180 THE CHtJRCHES 

in the New- York University, where he still 
remains. His successor is the Rev. Mr. Potts, 
from Mississippi. What is the next, John 1 

John. The Murray -street Church, sir. 
U/icle. The Murray-street Church was or- 
ganized about the year 1810. The Rev. John 
M. Mason, D. D., its first pastor; continued his 
labours there from the year of its foundation 
till 1822, when, on account of ill-heahh, he 
removed to Carlisle, Pa.; but returning to the 
city in the course of two years, he died m 1829. 
His successor was the Rev, Dr. Snodgrass, 
who, in 1834, removed to Troy. The pastoral 
office is at present filled by the Rev. Dr. 
M'Auley, of whom we have already spoken, in 
reference to the Rutgers'-street Church. The 
Murray-street Presbyterian Church, is justly 
spoken of by strangers, as one of the most 
finished specimens of architecture that our 
city churches afford. Its high steeple, tower- 
ing far above all the surrounding buildings, ex- 
hibits to the beholder a fine specimen of sym- 
metry and beauty. But to pass on : 

The Laight-street Church was organized 
in May, 1811, with the Rev. Matthew La 
Rue Perrine, D. D., for its first pastor. His 
successor was the Rev. Dr. Samuel H. Cox, 
who, in 1835, was called to act as Professor of 
Rhetoric and Pastoral Theology, in Auburn 
Seminary. Dr. Cox is now pastor of the First 
Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn, L. I. His 



OF NEW -YORK. 181 

successor, in the Laigbt-street Church, is the 
Rsv. Flavel S. Mines, formerly seaman's chap- 
lain at Havre, in France. 

The Seventh, P resbyteriari Church was or- 
ganized on the Uth of March, 1818. Their 
first building was in Sheriff-street, near Delan- 
cy. In 1826, they erected another one on 
Broome, corner of Ridge-street. This was 
burnt to the ground in 1831, but was rebuilt the 
next year. Mr. Elihu W. Baldwin, their first 
pastor, preached until the year 1835, when he 
was elected president of Wabash College, In- 
diana, to which state he removed. He was 
succeeded by the Rev. Edwin F. Hatfield, who 
still occupies the pulpit. 

The AUen-slreet Church was first organized 
in 1819; but their present edifice was not open- 
ed till the year 1834. The Rev. Henry White, 
D. D., was settled in 1829, and remained till 
1837, when he was dismissed to take the chair 
of Theology in the New- York Seminary. The 
Rev. Mr. Bradley is his successor. 

Concerning the remaining Presbyterian 
churches in our city, Henry may read to us the 
following succinct account, which I have pre- 
pared, mainly from Mr. Owen's sketch. It 
will present us with the dates of their forma- 
tion, and other principal topics of interest con- 
nected with their history. 

Henry. The Eighth Presbyterian Church 
was organized in October, 1819, The Rev. S. 



182 THE CHURCHES 

N. Rowan, D. D., was installed in the pastoral 
office, November, 1819, and resigned in 1830. 
Their edifice, in Christopher-street, was erected 
in 1821. Mr. H. Hunter, the successor of 
Mr. Rowan, died in August, 1S34; and was 
succeeded by Mr. Smith, the present incumbent. 

The Central Preshyterian Church was 
formed on the 8th of January, 1821. In the 
same year they erected their church in Broome^ 
street. The Rev. Wm. Patton was their pastor 
from the formation of the church until 1834j 
when he resigned his charge. The Rev. Wm. 
Adams, the present pastor, was his successor, 
and came to New- York from Brighton, Mass. 

The BoLoery Church was commenced under 
the labours of the Rev. W. Stafford, in 1822. 
In 1829, the Rev. Mr. Christmas was installed 
over this church, and preached until his death, 
in 1830. Dr. Woodbridge, his successor, was 
installed over the Bowery Church in October, 
1830, but has since removed to Bridgeport, 
Connecticut. 

The Bleccker-street Chvyrch was organized 
in 1825, and the edifice erected in 1826. Mr. 
Bruen, its first pastor, died in September, 1829. 
His successor is the Rev. Erskine Mason, D.D., 
a son of Rev. J. M. Mason, D. D., who was 
settled in 1830. Mr. Mason formerly preached 
at Schenectady. He also fills a professorship 
jn the New- York Theological seminary. 

The Spri/ig-slrcet Church was organized 



OF NEW- YORK, 



183 



on the 29th of September, 1825, and then con- 
sisted of 53 members. Within a year or two, 
the old building- has been removed, and a new 
one erected. Mr. H. Ludlow, their pastor, re- 
moved in 1826 to New Haven. Mr. Patton, 
from the Centre Church, is now his successor. 
Here is a view of the West Church, as it is 
seen from Varick-street. 




184 THE CHURCHES 

The West, Church was separated from the 
" North Presbyterian Church" in 1831, and in 
January, 1832, began to enjoy the stated hibours 
of its present pastor, the Rev. David R. Downer. 
The edifice was erected in Carmine-street, at 
the head of Varie.k, and dedicated in May, 1832. 

Since Mr. Downer's settlement, the number 
of communicants has increased from eighteen 
to four hundred. 

The First Free Church, with the Rev. Joel 
Parker at its head, was formed in 1830. They 
first worshipped in a room in Thames' -street, 
and then in the Masonic Hall, in Broadway, 
until the erection of an edifice at the corner of 
Dey and Washington streets. Mr. Parker left, 
in 1833, for New-Orleans. His successor, the 
Rev. Mr. Barrows, was installed July 28, 1835. 
Within the past year this church has united 
with the one worshipping at the Broadway 
Tabernacle. They have now their old pastor, 
again, from New-Orleans. The Broadway 
Tabernacle is one of the largest rooms in the 
United States. 

The Rev. John A. Murray collected the 
Second Avenue Church, in 1830. It was or- 
ganized in 1831, and in 1833 the building was 
erected on the Second Avenue, near Third- 
street. Mr. Murray left, to become an agent in 
the American Home Missionary Society; and 
his successor is the Rev. Charles S. Porter, 
from Gloucester, Massachusetts. 



OF NEW- YORK. 185 

The Second Tree Church was org-anized in 

1832, and located in the old Chatham-street 
Theatre, which was fitted up for their accom- 
modation. Their pastors have been the Rev. 
Mr. Finney, Rev. John Ingersoll, and Rev. 
Mr. Martin. 

The Third Free Church was first com- 
menced, in the Masonic Hall, in 1832, with 
thirty-five members. During the next year, an 
edifice was erected at the corner of Houston and 
Thompson streets. Their pastors have been the 
Rev. Dr. Lansing, and the Rev. N. E. Johnson. 
They are at present without a regular preacher. 
Dr. Lansing left on account of ill health, and 
Mr. Johnson to take charge of the editorial de- 
partment of the New-York Evangelist. 

The Village Church was a colony from the 
West Presbyterian Church, and organized in 

1833. 'I'heir church building stands on Jane- 
street, near the Eighth Avenue. Its first pastor 
was the Rev. Wm. Page, from Poughkeepsie, 
who is now in Michigan. His successor was 
the Rev. Daniel Clark, who resigned his charge 
in the spring of 1S38. 

The Fourth Free Church, organized in 1834, 
first worshipped in Congress Hall, Bowery. 
Their edifice was erected in 1835, and stands at 
the corner of Madison and Catherine streets. 
Its first pastor was the Rev. Arthur Granger, 
who was succeeded by the Rev. Mr. Sprague, 



186 THE CHURCHES 

now of Hartford. The Rev. Joel Mann, of 
Connecticut, succeeded Mr. Sprague. 

The members of the Brainerd Church 
erected their building on Rivington-street, in 
1835. The Rev. Asa D. Smith, their first and 
present pastor, was ordained and installed No- 
vember 2d, 1834, before the church building 
was completed. Mr. Smith was from the 
Andover Seminary. 

The Eighth Avenue Church was organized 
April, 1835. This Church first enjoyed the 
labours of Mr. Edwards, Avho was succeeded 
by the Rev. Mr. Riley. 

The Manhattan Church was organized in 
June, 1834, and commenced worshipping in a 
small building on Fourth-street, formerly occu- 
pied by the Baptists. The Rev. Mr. Siocum, 
from Hanover, New-Jersey, was their first 
pastor. 

The Mercer-street Church was commenced 
in 1835, under the pastoral care of the Rev. 
Dr. Skinner, from the Andover Seminary, Mas- 
sachusetts. Their building is one of the most 
beautiful and commodious church edifices in 
the city. Dr. Skinner is, also, a professor in 
the New-York Theological Seminary. 



OF NEW-YORK. 187 

CHAPTER TWENTY-SECOND. 

THR MORAVIANS. 

Uncle, The next denomination of Christians 
to the Presbyterians, known in the city, was 
the Moravian, or the Society of "United Bre- 
thren," as they call themselves. These made 
their appearance in New- York about the year 
1736. The society was then scarcely known 
in this country, but since that time has extend- 
ed veiy rapidly. 

John. Were the United Brethren from Eng- 
land ? 

Uncle. No: they were from Germany. They 
were first known there, under the name of 
United Brethren, about the year 1721. In 
this year, Nicholas Lewis, Count of Zinzen- 
dorf, their great leader, settled at Bertholdsdorf, 
afterwards called Herrnhutli., a village in Upper 
Lusatia, Germany, and soon gathered around 
him numbers from Moravia, and elsewhere; so 
that in ten years the new colon sts amounted to 
six hundred They gave their society the 
name of Unitas FratumAhe Uni'y of Brethren, 
or United Brethren, after the old society in 
Switzerland; but in the surrounding country 
they were known as Herrnhuiiersy and were 

le 



188 THE CHURCHES 

generally considered by the Lutherans, as fa- 
natical, though this opinion was probably for 
the most part, the result of prejudice. 

Henry. Then the United Brtthrcn of later 
times, are not the same as the ancient Moravians, 
sir? 

Uncle. Whether they are or not, is a diipu- 
ted point. Count Zinzendorf affirmed that 
they were; and consequently used to say that 
he was the reviver of an old society, not the 
founder of a new one. And as the United 
Brethren in later days have, in their extensive 
missionary operations, manifested a zeal for the 
cause of Christ worthy of the former fcllovvers 
of John Huss, and as they themselves claim it 
as a rightful honour, we will consider them as 
a genuine branch of the old society of Mora- 
vians; and consequently of a more remote ori- 
gin than their settlement at Herrnhuth, in 1721. 

John. Then, sir, we must hear concerning 
the origin of the ancient Moravians. 

Uncle. This I will give you in few vrords. 
The Moravians, or "Bohemian Brethren,'' were 
first known in Germany, in the 15th century ; 
when, animatedand encouraged by the preaching 
and example of the heroic J. Huss, they threw off 
the yokeof Popery,and embraced Protestantism. 
In the next century they connected thetnselvc-s 
Avith the Lutheran Churches in Saxony. But 
after the death of Luther, in 1546, and their ex- 
pulsion from their country in 1547, they gradu- 



OF NEW-YORK. 189 

ally formed a connection with the Swiss 
Church : although on the express condition 
that they should be governed by their own ec- 
clesiastical laws. Thus they continued until 
the year 1620, when all grounds of distinction 
being removed, the two separate churches were 
formed into one, under title of the " Church of 
the United Brethren.'' This is the origin from 
which the modern ?vloravians, who have been 
known in Germany as Herrnhutters, and in 
this country as Moravians, or United Brethren, 
are de.sirous to derive their descent. 

Henry. Did Count Zinzendorf ever visit this 
country, sir? 

Uncle. He did- like George Fox, Mr. Whit- 
firld, and other modern reformers, he turned 
his attention towards the growing colonies in 
the west, and successfully sought to spread the 
principles of his faith in these regions, by two 
personal visits to America. Where he visited 
and preached when here, we shall see by-and- 
by. We will first turn our attention to the in- 
troduction of fvloravianism into New-York. 
And on this subject you may read an extract 
from this manuscript letter of the Re\^ John 
Ettwein, written to the Rev. Dr. Miller, from 
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and bearing date of 
September I4th, 1797. 

Henry. " The first acquaintance of the 
United Brethren in the City of New-York, was 
made by our ministers and missionaries on their 
travels through New- York, with Mr. T. Noble, 



190 THE CHLRCHES 

(a merchant,) and other serious and awakened 
souls in connection with him, with whom Mr. 
INoble held private meetings in his own house." 

Uncle. This Mr. Noble was a respectable 
merchant in the city at that time, and for a long* 
while a worthy member of the Wall-street 
Presbyterian Church, during the ministry of 
Mr. Pemberlon. He may be said to have been 
the fowfider of the Society of United Brethren 
in this city. Read on. 

Henry. " Some of these missionaries I will 
mention : the Rev. Augustus Gotlleib Span- 
gen berg, who staid some days in New- York, 
in the years 1736 and 1737, on his way to and 
from Georgia, where a colony of the Brethren 
had been settled ; and, likewise, on his passage 
to and from St. Thomas, where a mission 
among the negroes had been begun. Also the 
the Rev. Frederick Martin, Missionary from 
St. Thomas, on his way to Bethlehem." Where 
is Bethlehem, sir? 

Uncle. Bethlehem is a flourish insf town in 
Pennsylvania, on the Lehigh River. It was 
settled by the United Brethren, and may be 
considered their head-nuaiters in this country. 
Ensiles a church, they have several large 
buildings for their different orders, and male 
and female seminaries, which have been quite 
celebrated. 

Henry. "Likewise the Rev. Christian H. 
Rouch, who, in July 1740, arrived at New-York, 
being on his way as a missionary to the Indians 



OF NEW-YORK. 191 

ofthat State. In the beginning- of the year 1741, 
the Kev. Peter Boehler, on his jouiney to Eu- 
rope, spent several days in New-York, and his 
testimony proved a blessing to many souls." 

Viiclc. Such is the account of the first settle- 
ment of the Society of United Brethren in this 
city, in which Mr. NobJe boie a conspicuous 
part. In the year last mentioned by Mr. Ettwein, 
Count Zinzendorf paid his first visit to New- 
York. This was his second voyage to America, 
but during the fiist he appears to have confined 
his attention almost wholly to the West India 
Islands. He arrived in this city on the 2d 
of December, 1741, and remained only till the 
6th of the same month, when he proceeded on 
his way to Pennsylvania, where the settlement 
o{ Bethlehem had been just begun. He ap- 
pears to have spent the whole of the year 1742 
in journeying about, preaching, and establishing 
missions in difierent partsof the country-, and on 
his return to Europe in January, 1743, he again 
L tarried a {q\x days in New-York. This latter 
; stay of his apparently had an important bearing 
upon the establishment of a society in the city ; 
for it was at this time that Mr. Noble and others 
prevailed on the Rev. Peter Boehler, who had 
1 accompanied the Count thus far on his journey, 
to remain with them and minister to their assem- 
blies. This Mr. Boehler consented to do, but 
was soon interrupted in his good work. A 
fortnight had scarcely elapsed, when he was 
16* 



192 THE CHURCHES 

apprehended by a constable, broug;ht before the 
governors council, slightly qucs'ioned by them, 
and ordered to leave the town within twenty-lour 
hours! This illegal command he was obliged 
to ob^y, and forthwith crossed the ferry to 
Staten Ishind, where he remained until Mr. 
Noble, and some other reputable citizens, came 
over and presented him with a regular call to 
be their minister. He then leturned. 

Jolm. Who was this governor, sir, that ex- 
pelled Mr. Boehler? 

Uncle. Governor Clarke ; who cared but 
little more perhaps about justice in such matters, 
tl^an Lord Cornbury himself. This calling of 
Mr. Boehler may be looked upon as the lirst 
establishment of the society, although it was not 
regularly organized as a "Society of United 
Brethren,'' until December, 1748, when Bishop 
Johannes de Walterelle visited New-York. 
The congregation was at this time small, num- 
bering somewhat under one hundred. The 
appointed places for meetings were at the house 
of Mr. Noble, and elsewhere, until 1751, when 
a chapel was erected. 

Henry. Where did the chapel stand, sir ? 

Uncle. On Fair, now Faiton-street, near the 
corner of Dutch-street. It stood back some dis- 
tance from the line of the street, and was en- 
closed by a high board fence, so as to be scarcely 
visible to passers-by. The present edifice is 
neatly built, facing the street, and bears on it 



or NEW-YORK. 193 

this inscription — ''Founded 1751. Rebuilt 
1 820. P rniestant Episcopal Church of United 
Brethren.''^ 

Henry. How do the United Brethren differ 
from other Christians, sir ? 

Uncle. Mostly in their general manner of 
living, and their customs; though in doctrine, 
especially that relating to the Trinity, they dif- 
fer somewhat from other evangelical denomina- 
tions. They are said to hold some peculiar 
views in regard to the Holy Spirit, and the moral 
law, as contained in the ten commandments, and 
and some peculiar customs in reo-ard to matri- 
mony, prayer, and general discipline. Count 
Zinzendorf divided the members of the society 
into different classes, accordingly as they were 
young or old, married or unmarried, widows or 
widowers, each class having over it a director 
subject to its own choice, and all the classes 
being under the superintendance of three co-as- 
sistant elders. 1'he particular attention paid by 
the United Brethren to the instruction of youth, 
and their prevailinof custom of sing-ins: relicfious 
hymns, of which exercise they make a great 
part of their public worship to consist, are two 
happy features in their system. 

John. And their missionary spirit, too, sir. 

Uncle. Yes, John : we can never lose sight 
of that. Whenever we think of Greenland, St. 
Thomas, and St. Croix ; of Lapland, Tartary, or 
Guinea : of the Cape of Good Hope, the Island 



194 THE CHURCHES 

of Ceylon, ovof the Indians ofoi:jr own country; 
unless we are carelessly forgetful or un pardon- 
ably ignorant, we cannot help thinking at the 
same time of the self-denial, zeal, and continued 
exertion, of these indefatigable Moravian mis- 
sionaries. Their example is worthy of apostolic 
times. 

One thing with regard to their ministers, I 
"wish you here to notice; they receive no fixe cl 
salaries; but lake what the stewards provide 
for them from the collections made at the public 
and private meetings. As to their church gov- 
ernment, the following paragraph will give us 
some information; — "They have their minister 
and a committee of the most trusty members of 
the congregation. In matters of moment, the 
minister has to consult the conference at Bethle- 
hem, which is respon^ible to the general Synod 
of the United Breihren." 

Henry. Did Mr. Boehler continue long the 
minister of the society in New- York? 

Uncle. As his presence was required in Penn- 
sylvania, he soon bid adieu to his congregation 
in New-York : but sent preachers to them from 
time to time as he found it practicable, until 
February, 174G, when the Rev. G. Neuser ac- 
cepted a call lo assist Mr. Noble in his labours; 
which he continued to do till Mr. Noble's death, 
when he acted as the sole minister. Some of 
the ministers, who have o.'TiciateJ since that time 
in the chanel in Fulton-street, I find enumerated 



OF NEW -YORK. 195 

as follows : — The Reverends Owen Rice, 
James Greening, Liidolph A. Rus;.meyer, G. 
Neuser again, Jacob Rodgers, Thomas Yarrel, 
Gustavus Shewkiiik, James Birkby, and God- 
frey Peter; the latter of whom departed this 
life, during his ministry, October 27th, 
1797. Since then Mr. Yarrel served again; 
who with Mr. Neuser, remained in connection 
with the congregation longer than most of the 
others, who generally remained only two, three, 
or four years. The Rev. Mr. Kluge is the 
present minister. 



CHAPTER TWENTY-THIRD. 

THE BAPTISTS. 

Uncle. The next denomination that claims 
our attention, is the Baptist. 

There was a society founded here under this 
name, as early as 1709, by several American 
Baptist preachers; whose name was derived 
merely from the characteristic mode of baptism, 
and not from any simiLirity of doctrine to those 
of the present Baptist Church. Mr Parkinson, 
pastor of the First Church, in Gold street, says 



195 THE CHURCHES 

in his Jubilee sermon, that they were Professed 
Arnnnians. 

This church seemed to flourish for a hw 
years ; so much so that* they erected a meeting- 
house on Golden Flill, which they occupied un- 
til the year 1731, when the church was entirely 
dissolved. Their meeting-house was claimed 
and sold as private property, by one of the trus- 
tees. 

Concerning the rise of the present Baptist 
Church in our city, Henry may read a short 
accoimt that I have prepared for you from Mr. 
Parkinson's sermon. 

Henry. " About the year 1745, Mr. Jeremiah 
Dodge, a member of the Baptist Church at Fish- 
kill, settled in tlris city, and opened a prayer- 
meeting in his own house. At these meetings 
some of the members of the former church attend- 
ed, and occasionally officiated. 

In the same year, one of their number, Mr. 
Joseph Meeks, was baptized, and thenceforth 
became an efficient member of the church. 
Soon after this an invitation was sent by Messrs. 
Dodge, Meeks, and Robert North, to Mr. John 
Pine (a licentiate in the church at Fish-kill) To 
come and preach to them. Mr. Pine's labours 
were very useful in establishing the church in 
the doctrines of the Gospel. In 1750 Mr. Pine 
died. 
After this, Elder James Carman (of Cranbury) 



OF NEW-YORK. liJ7 

Yi'sited them, and performed baptism, at different 
times. 

In 1753, they united themselves to the church 
in Scotch PI, tins, and enjoyed the labours of 
their pastor, the Rev. Mr. Miller, once or twice 
in a quarter. Mr. Miller had visited them but a 
few times, when finding their congregation too 
numerous to be accommodated in a private house, 
a rigging Loft, in Horse-and-Cart-street, was 
procured and fitted up for pubhc worship." 

John. That was William-street. 

Uncle. And the lofl used, must have been the 
same one afterwards occupied by the Methodists, 
in 1767. This building still stands, and should 
be an object of interest and veneration, to these 
two denominations now so flourishing and nu- 
merous in our city. Read on, Henry. 

Henry. " Here they statedly assembled for 
threeor four years, when the loft being otherwise 
disposed of by the owners, they assembled again 
in the dwelling-house of Mr. Meeks. In 1758, 
having purchased apiece of ground, where the 
church now stands in Gold-street, they commen- 
ced the erection of a small meeting-house, which 
was opened on the 4th of March, 1760. Their 
numbers now began lapidly to increase; and 
having obtained dismission from the church at 
Scotch Plains in 1762, ihey were, on the 19th 
of June of the same year, constituted a church 
by the assistance of Elders Benjamin Miller and 
John Gano." 



198 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. Their first pastor, after this orgfaniza- 
tion, was the Rev. Mr. Gano, who had formerly 
been settled over a church in Yadkin, North- 
Carolina. 

Mr. Gano was highly esteemed by liis people, 
and by the public at large: so much so, that his 
church began to increase in numbers, and the 
meeting-house was much enlarged for their ac- 
commodation. The dimensions of the fiist house, 
are not precisely known, but Mr. David Grim 
has left a small drawing of it, which, as it is a 
curiosity, 1 will one day show yon. When 
enlarged it measured 52 feet by 42. 

Thus the church continued to flourish, until the 
revolution, when Mr. Gano tntcredas a chaplain 
in the army, and his congregation were entirely 
dispersed. During this melancholy period the 
meeting-house suffered great injury from the 
British ; having been used as a horse-atabU. 

Alter the peace, however, a short time only 
elapsed before the church was restored to her 
former prosperity. 

In 1788, Mr. Gano took leave of his people, 
and departed for Kentucky, after having been 
their pastor for 26 years. 

His successor was the Rev. Benjamin For- 
ster, from Newport, Rhode Island. The church 
enjoyed the labours of Mr. Forster only for a 
short while. For on the 26th of August, 1798, 
he died, after a settlement ol about mne months 
in this city. 



OF NEW-YOKK. 199 

The Rev. William Collier, from Boston, 
succeeded, and officiated till the year 1804. 
During his ministry here, the old building' was 
removed, and the present edifice erected. While 
the new house was building, the congregation 
worshipped in the old French Church, in Pine- 
street. 

Theirpresentpastor, the Rev. William Parkin- 
son, was iVlr. Collier's successor, Mr. Parkinson 
came to New-York from Frederick-town, in 
Maryland, his native state. He sctlkd in 1805, 
and has been a pastor here forneaily thirty-ibur 
years. 

Concerning the remainder of the Baptist 
Churches in our city, you may read the follow- 
ing : 

John. The Second, in Oliver-street, founded 
in 1795, and rebuilt of stone in 1819. Rev. 
Mr. Cone, pastor. 

The Third, in Anthony-street, founded in 
1805, built of wood ; Mr. Hayborn, pastor. 

The Fourth, in Broome-strett, founded 1806 } 
Rev. Mr. Blair, pastor. 

The Fifth, in Mulberry-street, founded in 1809. 
Present edifice erected in 1817; Rev. Mr.Maclay, 
pastor. 

The Sixth, in M'Dougal-street, founded in 
1810; first built in Vandam-street. Rev. Mr. 
Dunbar, pastor. 

The South, in Nassau-street, founded in 1824; 
Rev. Mr. Somers, pastor. 
17 



200 THE CHURCHES 

The Union, in Stanton, near Forsyth-street; 
Rev. Mr. Benedict. 

The. Betkel in Bowery; Rev. Mr. Miller. 

The Bethel, in Mott-sti eel ; Rev. Mr. Chase. 

The North, in Bedford-street; Rev. Mr. 
Brouner. 

The East, in Grand-street; Rev. Mr. Mid- 
dleton. 

The West, in Duane-strect ; Rev. Mr. Dow- 
ling. 

The Ebenczer, in Houstoun -street ; Rev. Mr. 
Marsh. 

The Salem Church, in King-street. 

The Emmaus Par, m Chrystie-street ; Rev. 
Mr. Parkinson. 

New Church, in Amity-street ; Rev. Mr. 
Williams. 



CHAPTER TWENTY-FOURTH. 

THE METHODISTS. 

Henry. The Methodists, I believe, sir, were 
not so early a sect in this city, as the Baptists. 

Uncle. No. And the reason vj-as, that they 
were very little known in this country as a sect 
at all, at the time the Baptists settled here. 



O F N E W - Y O R K , 20 1 

Then when Ave remember that they originated 
in a foreign country, we will not wonder that 
the eighteenth century had ahnost elapsed be- 
fore they were much known in New-York. 

John. They commenced in England, I be- 
lieve. 

Uncle. They did so. But Henry may tell 
us what he remembers concerning their rise, 

Henry. John Wesley was the founder of 
Methodism. He was a member of the Oxford 
university, and there he and his followers took 
the name of Methodists. 

John. Why where they called Methodists, 
uncle ? 

Unde. Because they performed their religious 
duties by certain fixed rules and methods. They 
were sometimes denominaiod f^arrcimeniarlans ; 
and sometimes in ridicule, their fellow students 
gave them the nick-name of the godly-club. 
You may go on Henry. 

Henry. His sentiments began to spread, 
about the year 1740, through all parts of Great 
Britain and Ireland. But about the introduc- 
tion of Methodism into this city, I can only say 
that, if I remember aright, it was near the year 
1768. 

Uncle. You are correct; it was only a few 
years before the breaking out of the American 
Revolution. Mr. Wesley ahvays considered 
the beginning of the Methodist Church, in 
New- York, to be the beginning of it in America. 



202 THE CHURCHES 

He had indeed foimerly visited Georgia, and 
there organized a church, but on his departure 
it had enlireJy dwindled away. 

One of the most efficient organizers of the 
Methodist Church in this city, was Philip Em- 
bury; a man of sincere piety and true benevo- 
lence, and who, in his emigi-ation from Britain, 
had not left behind him his devotional and reli- 
gious feelings. Urged on by a lady of zeal 
and activity, he opi'ned the doors of his own 
house, and there, with a little band of six or 
seven, held the first Methodist Meeting that 
New-York had ever seen. His house, thus 
rendered worthy of memory, stood on Barrack- 
street, since known as Augustus-street. 

Hi'nry. And now called, City-Hall Place. 

Uncle. Thus they began. But continuing 
to struggle on, through the scoffs and derision 
of ungodly men, who considered them as great 
enthusiasts, they gradually increased and 
strengthened, until they were soon beyond the 
fear of disturbance, or reach of opposition. 

But Mr. Embury was not the only man whose 
name is conspicuous in the early history of the 
church here. There was another, whose 
name was Webb. Captain Webb, (by which 
he was generally known,) had been barrack- 
master in the English Army, stationed at Al- 
bany. 

John. The English, then, held possession of 
this country ? 



OF NEW -YORK. 203 

Henry. Yes. It was before the Revolution, 
you know. 

Uiir.le. Captain Webb, hearing of this feeble 
band who werestru^trJing against a strong tide 
of opposition, came down to New-York, and 
made his appearance among them as a friend. 
His first appearance at one of their meetings, 
was quite unexpected, and somewhat alarming. 
The circumstance is described by a writer, in 
the following hmguage. Read it John. 

Jolin. " Once having met together as usual, 
they were surprised, whilst singing, by the en- 
trance of a man, in full military uniform, whose 
appearance on such an occasion struck the 
whole congregation with consternation. All 
eyes were anxiously fixed upon him, to discern 
whether any sinister purpose was intended by 
this visit, from an officer of the Royal American 
Troops; but when they saw him disposed to 
join in worship — when they saw him kneel to- 
gether with themselves in solemn prayer, and 
perceived the marked serenity of his features, 
their fears were dispelled, and they recognized, 
under the disguise of war, a brother, and a 
faithful follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Af- 
ter the exercises were concluded, he introduced 
himself as Lieutenant Webb, from Albany; and 
from that moment he became the chief pillar of 
this rising congregation." 

Uncle. After this. Captain Webb and Mr. 
Embury became conjointly the stated preachers 
17* 



204 THE CUHRCHES 

in the congregation ; and the Lord of the har- 
vest blessed, with an unsparing hand, their per- 
severance and faithfidncss. 

Captain Webb's appearance was somewhat 
of a noveltv, and perhaps contributed not a little 
to his popularity. He was a large, stout man, — 
always appeared in the pulpit with his regi- 
mentals — and wore a band aiound his forehead, 
to cover a sightless eye which had been wound- 
ed in the campaign against Gluebec, in 1758. 

John. He must have looked singularly 
enough, sir. 

Uncle. True. Biit as he was a soldier of 
the King of England, so his regimentals might 
aptly remind him that he was a soldier too of 
the cross, and owed allegiance to the King of 
Heaven and earth. Their rooms in Barrack- 
street soon became too straight for them, and 
they were obliged fo seek accommodations 
elsewhere. Accordin^lv a house in William- 
street, contaming a large upper room, once oc- 
cupied as a riofging-loft, was procured and filled 
up. Mr. Embuiyhere preached from a pulpit, 
made with his orcn hands. 

Henry. In uha: part of William-street was 
this? 

Uncle. Only a idw doors north of John-street. 
The buildinjy is still standina:, in a <rood state of 
preservation, and is known as No. 120. It is 
occupied as a store by those, and passed daily 
by hundreds, who little think of its former use. 



OF NEW -YORK. 205 

Here Messrs. Embury and Webb continued 
to preach, and to labour: and here God mani- 
fested his special prosence, in increasing their 
numbers, and strengthening their hands, until 
1768, when they began seriously to think of 
erecting a church. This they knew to be, in 
their present situation, .-.t great undertaking. 
Nevertheless, in due time, they had the pleasure 
of seeing their utmost desire gratified. Their 
first plan was to rent a plot of ground, and erect 
a wooden building. But by the activity and 
zeal of one or two of the incrabers, they were 
enabled to purchase a site on what was then 
called Golden-hill, near William-street. 

John. You have mentioned Golden-hill be- 
fore, sir. 

Uncle. It is now known as John-street. 
Here they soon saw their most sanguine hopes 
accomplished, in the erection of a substantial 
stone church; which was dedicated on the 30th 
October, 1768. The sermon on this occasion 
was preached by Mr. Embury, and from a pul- 
pit made with his own hands. 

After this, as they now had a name and a 
habitation, their meetings became more fully 
attended, and the respectability of their sect, in 
the eyes of the world, was much advanced. 

Golden-hill had not then been levelled, as 
as we find John-street now; and the church 
had been placed down some feet, in anticipation 
of such a future change. But when the hill 



206 T H i: CHURCHES 

\vas levelled, so much was cut away, that the 
building stood much higher from the ground 
than was at fiist intended. The two side doors 
led to the galleries. These galleries were not 
finished till some years after the dedication, so 
that they afforded seats to none but boys and 
young men, who for a long time ascended by 
means of a ladder. Su<:h was Weslej/^s Chapel 
in New-York ; the first in America. 

To screen the congregation from the gaze of 
the passer-by, a high wooden fence was erected 
before the whole front. There was a house 
standing nearly in front of it, an old fashioned 
Dutch building, that served as a parsonage, li- 
brary, and sexton's domicil, until its removal to 
make way for John-street. 

Henry. Jo!;n-street took its name from John 
Hardenbrook, I think you said, Uncle. 

John. The man who gave the ground for 
the North Dulcb Church. 

Uncle. And whose escutcheon is still there 
to be seen. As was usual in those days, part 
of the expense of erecting the Methodist Church, 
was defrayed by means of a lottery. Concern- 
ing this mode of raising money for charitable 
and benevolent purposes, in use b;^ our prede- 
cessors, we have before conversed. 

We have seen the manner in which the Me- 
thodist d^noai illation rose, in our city, and the 
rapidity v/ith which their s;jntuTients spread, 
and their numbers increased. 



OF NEW-YORK. 207 

As yet they had had no regularly ordained 
ministers among them. But in 1769, the year 
after the completion of the chapel, some of the 
most influential in the society, having consulted 
together, finally addressed a letter to Mr. Wes- 
ley in-Eno-land, beseeching him to send minis- 
ters to labour among them; and promising to 
support them even if they should be obliged to 
sell their coats to procure their subsistence. 
Such a call from such men, could not meet with 
a refusal. And, accordingly, in the same year, 
two clergymen were despatched to America; 
"viz. Rev. Messrs. Boardman and Pilmore. 
These brought with them fifty pounds sterling, 
as a " token of brotherly lov^," from the bre- 
thren in England to those in New-York. A 
part of a letter which Mr. Pi'more wrote back 
to Mr. Wesley, dated Philadelphia, October 
31st, 1769, you may read to us, John, as 
it comprises some inlbrmalion concerning the 
rise of the church. 

John. "Rev. Sir: By the blessing of God we 
are safely arrived here, after a tedious passage 
of nine weeks. We were not a little surprised 
to find Captain Webb in town, and a society of 
about a hundred members, who desire to be in 
close connection with you. This is the Lord's 
doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. I have 
preached several times, and the people flock to 
hear, in multitudes. Here seems to be a great 
and effectual door opening in this country." 



208 THE CHURCHES 

Uncle. Mr. Pilmore, after travelling through 
some of the southern states, and preaching to 
crowds of eager hearers of the word, who every- 
where met him, came to New-York, and finally 
settled as the pastor of a church here. 

John. I remember, sir; his church was in 
Ann-street. 

Uncle. Yes; though no trace of a church is 
to be found there now. From this city he writes 
again to Mr. Wesley, under date of April 24lh, 

1770, fiom which an extract may be interest- 
ing to us. Read it, Henry. 

Hear If. " Our house contains about seventeen 
hundred hearers; only about a third part of 
of those v\'ho attend get in ; the rest are glad to 
hear without. There appears such a willing- 
ness in the Americans to hear the woid, as I 
never saw before. The numbers of blacks that 
attends the preaching affects me much." 

Uncle. The effv.^ct of such representations of 
want in spiritual things among the people here, 
was that more labourers left their homes in 
England and embarked in this good cause. In 

1771, the Rev. Messrs. Ashbury and Wright, 
having volunteered their services, were des- 
patched to America. These were warmly re- 
ceived by the people, who bid them welcome as 
messengers ofglid tidings to the western world. 
They continued to travel through the colonies, 
more particularly in the middle and southern 
states, until their number was reinforced by the 



OF NEW-YORK. 209 

arrival of Mr. Thomas Eankin, and Mr. 
George Shadford, in the year 1773. And to 
these again were added in the next year two 
more. From this time ibrward, there was no 
lack of labourers in the field: and the rapidity 
with which tlieir doctrines spread through the 
whole United States, bore ample testimony to 
their faithfulness as preachers of the word, as 
well as to the power of that word to renew the 
heart and sanctify the life. 

Henry. What became of Mr. Pilmore, sir? 

Uncle. Having united himself with the Pro- 
testant Episcopal Church in this cit}'-, his friends 
built him a church in Ann-street, long known 
as Mr. Pilmore's Christ Church. Here he con- 
tinued to preach until his removal to Philadel- 
phia, where he finally died. His church was 
afterwards sold to the Roman Cistholics. 

Like other denominations, the Methodists had 
some trouble during the war of the American 
Revolution. In Maryland, one of their preach- 
ers, Mr. Ashbury, was fined five vminds for 
preaching publicly. And through all the pro- 
vinces they were regarded with rather a jealous 
eye by the American parly. 

Henri/. Why so. Uncle? 

Uncle. I suppose, because it wn? well known 
t!iat Mr. Wesley was a st un, ch lcy;ilist, and 
that some of their most prominent clergymen 
had been opposed to the proceedings of the 
Americans. But while this gave them enemies 



210 THE CiirRCIIES 

on one side, it secured tbem fi-iends on the other. 
Consequently, when all the other congregations 
in this city were dispersed during the war, and 
their churches used for secular purposes, the 
Methodists were not very seriously incommoded. 
They were only required to give up their chapel 
in John street, for the use of the German troops, 
in the fore-part of the Sabbath, while they them- 
selves might use it during the remainder of the 
day. They were considered as loyalists, and 
were treated accordingly. On refusal to take 
up arms in the Amtrican cause, many were 
fined and whipped. Many of the societies suf- 
fered by a deprivation of regular preaching. 
But even in the midst of these troubles, and per- 
plexities, their preachers found means to advance 
the cause of truth; and, like their brtheren of 
other denominations, they embraced whatever 
opportunity offered, to preach the gospel, and to 
keep alive, and nuurish, even in the midst of 
war and tumult, the seeds of religion in the 
hearts of the people. 

During this time of commotion and inquietude, 
by the recommendation of Mr. Wesley, Mr. 
Ashbury was considered as a kind of superin- 
iendant of the Methodist Churches in America. 
But in 1784, Dr. Coke was sent out as a 
Bishop, who should take upon himself the care 
of the American Churches. He brought with 
him credentials in Mr. Wesley's own hand 
writing. 



OF NEW-YORK. 211 

Dr. Coke was received with open hearts by 
the church, who joyfully welcomed him as their 
bishop, — or suferinlendant, which appears to 
have been Mr. Wesley's favourite term for 
bishop. 

John. I never knew that the Methodists had 
bishops. 

Uncle. You see that they have; and hence 
their church is designated as the Methodist 
Episcopal. One of the first of Dr. Coke's pub- 
lic acts, was the ordination of Francis Ashbury 
as superintendant ; which was regularly per- 
formed, at a conference of the church, in 1784. 
This conference was held at the city of Balti- 
more, and there the Methodists of America 
were first formed into a regular church, and the 
name of The Methodist Episcopal Church was 
given them. 

Henry. Were they like the Episcopalians ifi 
their forms of worship ? 

Uncle. They were, somewhat, at first. They 
used in some of the larger towns and cities for a 
few years, the prayer book of the English 
Church, from which prayers were read on the 
Sabbath, and at the morning service of Wed- 
nesday and Friday. Bands and gowns were for 
sometime worn by the superintendanis, and some 
of the elders. But all of these, meeting with 
opposition from the people, were gradually laid 
aside, and given up. 

After this regular organization of the Metho- 
18 



212 THE CHURCHES 

dist Church, their cause greatly revived, and the 
number of converts multiplied on every hand. 
When Dr. Coke sailed for England, in the 
year 1785, the members of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, in the United Slates, numbered 
about fifteen thousand. And about the period 
of Mr. Wesley's death, they were stated to have 
been forty-three thousand. 

John. What a large number, sir ! 
^'- Uncle. But from this pei iod, such n'as the as- 
tonishing progrf ss of JVlethodism in this country, 
that the enrolled members in 1820, were tivo 
hu'rifired and eighty-thousand. 

John. What must it be now! 

Uncle. A few words in relation to Dr. Coke, 
the first Methodist Bishop in America; he was 
born at Brecon, South Wales, on the 9th of Sep- 
tember, 1747: at the age of sixteen was sent to 
Qxford, where he received his education ; was 
chosen to a responsible civil office at the age of 
twenty-one ; and held a respectable curacy for 
several years, where he became acquainted 
with Mr. Wesley, and embraced his sentiments. 
In 1784, he was ordained by Mr. Wesley, as 
superintendent to the churches in America; 
where he continued to labour for many years. 
During the latter portion of his life he was 
much engaged in the cause of foreign missions; 
and towards India especially was his attrniion 
turned. He was so much in earnest for the 
salvation of the poor Flindoos, that he resolved 



O F N E \V - Y R K . 213 

to go himself, and devote his life to the work of 
evangelizing them; and, accordingly, in the 
year 1814, he embarked for India. But those 
benighted shores he was destined never to see; 
for on the 3d of May, of that year, he was 
found, by his servant, stretched on the cabin 
floor, a cold and liit'less corpse! Thus sud- 
denly was this devoted man called away fiom 
his earthly labours. He was buried at sea. 

The Methodist Churches in our city, are nu- 
merous; they have appeared in the following 
order: 

The First, is the John-street Church, of 
which we have already spoken. The present 
edifice was erected in 18 1 7, and stands on the 
spot occupied by the one built in 1768. It is 
built of stone, and the interior finished in mod- 
ern style. 

The Second, stands in Forsyth-street ; first 
built of stone, and was founded in 1789 ; rebuilt 
in 1833. 

The Third, in Duane-street, was founded in 
1797. Its size is 75 ff et by 56. 

The jpow?7A, is the African Church in Church- 
street, founded in 1800, and rebuilt in 1820. 

The Fifth, founded in 1806, and built in Mott- 
street, of wood, has since been removed to 
Willet-street, near Broome. 

The Sixth, in Allen-street, built of stone, 
founded in 1809; rebuilt in 1836. 

The Seventh, in Bedford-street, corner of Mor- 



214 THE CHURCHES 

ton, founded in 1809, built of wood ; size 60 feet 
by 42. 

The Eighth, founded in 1818, built of wood; 
in Broome-street, since removed to Green-street, 
near Broome. 

The Ninth, the Bowery Village Church, 
built of wood in 1818, in Seventh-street, then 
called Nichols William-street. It has lately 
been rebuilt with brick. 

The Tenth, Independent Church, in Chrystie- 
street ; built in 1821 of brick. 

The Eleventh, in Eighteenth-street, near the 
Eighth-Avenue, built of brick. 

The TiuelftJi, a beautiful chapel, in Vestry- 
street, ne.ir Hudson. 

The Thirteenth, is the Wesleyan Chape), 
in Mulberry-street, near Bleecker; lately erected, 
and presenting an interior of striking neatness 
and beauty, 



CHAPTER TWENTY-FIFTH. 

THE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 

tincle. Concerning the Reformed Presby- 
terian Church, Henry may read this account, 
which a friend has furnished us. 



OF NEW-Y ORK. 215 

Henry. The Reformed Presbyterian Con- 
gregation in this city, was founded in the year 
1797. In 1800, the late Rev. Dr. M'Leod'was 
installed as their pastor, and in 1801, the church 
edifice in Chamber-street, first occupied by 
them, was erected. It was a small neat frame 
building, to which a burying-ground was at- 
tached, and was well known to the religious 
public. In this place the congregation wor- 
shipped, until by the increase of their numbers 
and resources, a larger edifice was demanded, 
and in 1818, the more extensive and commo- 
dious building of brick, which still occupies the 
old site in Chamber-street, was erected. 

In these houses Dr. M'Leod discharged his 
stated ministry, until his decease. For more 
than thirty years he occupied a very prominent 
place among the clergymen and other literary 
characters of this city. His published Irctures 
on the "Scripture Prophecies;" his "Sermons 
on the Lite War ;" and " on the Life and Power 
of True Godliness," and the many contributions 
he was known to make to the various periodi- 
cals of the day, remain as evidences of his dis- 
tinguished abilities. 

From many large and wealthy congrega- 
tions of other denominations, in this city, and 
elsewhere, and from different institutions, the 
doctor received invitations to change his eccle- 
siastical relations, but he preferred remaining 
with the people among whom he commenced 
18* 



216 THECHURCHES 

his ministry. His abilities as a controversialist, 
and eloquence as a preacher, attracted large 
crowds to his church, and for years it was a 
place of resort, on the evenings of the Sabbath, 
to many Christians of all religious persuasions. 

Dr. M'Looddied in 1833. In 1835, the con- 
gregation disposed of the church in Chambers- 
street, and removed to the corner of Prince and 
Orange streets, where they now worship. The 
Rev. .lohn N. M'Leod, the son and successor of 
his father, Dr. M'Leod. is their present pastor. 

The Reformed Presbyterians are strict old 
fashioned Presbyterians, vvho take as their sub- 
ordinate standards of faith, the Westminster 
Confession, and what is styled their "Act De- 
clarative, and Testimony Explanatory" of it. 

Uncle. This will end, for the present, our 
conversations concerning the churches of New- 
York. 

At some future time, it maybe interesting and 
instructive to us to consider, more minutely, the 
history and character of the ministers who have 
been settled over our Evangelical Churches 
here, since the first settlement by the Dutch. 



A LIST OF ALL 

THE 

CHURCHES IN THE CITY, 

ALPHABETICALLY ARRANGED. 



AFRICAX. 



Abyssinian Baptist, in Anthony-street. 
Asb'.iry Methodist, in Elizabeth-street. 
Methodist, in Second-street. 
Methodist African Union, in Fifteenth-street. 
St. Philip's, Episcopal, in Centre-street. 
Zion, Baptist, in Spring-street. 
Zion, Methodist, Church-street. 
Protestant Episcopal, Grand-street. 



BAPTIST. 

First, in Gold-street. 
Second in Oliver street. 
Bethel, in the Bowery. 
Bethel, in Mott-street. 
Fifth, in riluiberry-street. 
Beriah, North, in'M'Dougal-street. 
South, in Nassau-street. 
Eighth, in Broome-street, 
North, la BedTord-sU-eet. 



218 

East, in Grand-street. 

West, in Duane-street. 

Ebenezer, in Houstoun-street, 

Salem, in Kinif-sireet. 

Emmaus Par, in Chrystie-street. 

New, in Amity-street. 

Congregation of Disciples, in Laurens-street. 



CATOOI^IC. 

St. Patrick's Cathedral, in Mott-street. 
St. James, in J;imes-strcet. 
St. Mary's, in Grand-street. 
St. Peter's, Barclay-street. 
St. Joseph's, Sixth Avenne. 
Transfiguration, in Chamber-street. 
German Catholic, in Second-street. 



DUTCH REFORMED. 

South Church, in Murray-street. 

Branch of South Church, in University Chapel. 

Middle, in Liberty street. 

North, in William-street. 

Branch of North, in Ninth-street. 

North West, in Franklin-street. 

North P'ast, in Market-street. 

Ninth, in King-street. 

Church in Broome-street. 

Church n Greene-street. 

Church in Bleecker-street. 

Seventh, in Hairl.am. 

Mission Church, in Houstoun-street. 

Young Men's Mission, in Third-street. 



219 



EPISCOPAL.. 

All Saints' Church, in Henry-street. 

Christ Church, in Anthony-street. 

Ascension, in Canal-street. 

Epiphany, in Stanlon-street. 

Grace, in Broadway. 

St. Clement's, in Amity-street. 

De St. iisprit, in Franklin-street. 

St. Andrew's, in Hucrlern. 

St. Bartholomew's, in Lafayette Place. 

St. James', in Hamilton Square. 

St. George's, in Beekman-street. 

St. Luke's, in Hudson-street. 

St. Mark's, in Stnyvesant-street. 

St. JVIary'.s, in MuvhattantiUc. 

St, ALitthevv's, in Grand-street. 

St. .Michael's, in B'ooming.lalc. 

Nativity, in Avenue D. 

St. Peter's, in Twentieth-street. 

St. Stephen's, in Chrystie-street. 

St. Thomas', isi Broadway. 

St. Timothy's, in Houstoun-street. 

Trinity, in Broadway. 

St. Paul's, in Broadway. 

St. John'.--, in Varick-street. 

Zion, in Mott-street. 

Free Mission, in Vandewater-street. 



GERMAN, 

German Christian, in Essex-street. 
Germ.in Reformed, in Forsyth-street. 
First Christian Chapel, Broome-street. 
Second do do Fourteentli-street. 



>20 



FRIENDS, 



Meeting-House, in Rose-street, 
do Hester-street. 

do Henry-street. 

do Downing-street. 



JEWS' SYNAGOGUES. 

First Shearith Israel, in Crosby -street. 
Second, in Elm-street. 
Third, in Centre-street. 



LUTHERAN EVANGELICAL., 

St. James', in Orans;e-stieet. 
St. Matthew's, in Walker-street. 



METHODISTS. 

Mariner's Chapel, in Rosevelt-street. 

Church, in Allen-street. 

do Forsyth -street.. 

do Willett-.street. 

do Second-street. 

do Seventh-street* 

do Greene-street. 

do Dnane-street. 

do John-street. 

do Bedford-street. 

do Eighteenth-street. 

do Vestry-street. 

do Mulherry-street* 



221 

Methodist Society, in Chrystie-street. 

Associate Protestant Met!iodists, in Attorney-street. 

do do do Snliivan-street. 

Primitive Methodist, in Houstoun-street. 

do do Elizabeth-street. 



MORA VI AN^. 

United Brethren, in Fulton-street. 
New Jerusalem Chapel, in Peail-street. 



PHESBYTERIAI^f. 

Associate Presbyterian, in Grand-street. 

Second Associate Presbyterian, in Thompson-street. 

Associate Relbrmed, in Pearl-street. 

Second Associate Relbrmed, in Prince-street. 

Brick Meeting, Beekuian-street. 

First, in Wall-street. 

Third, in Riit^ers'-street. 

Scotch, in Grand-street. 

Canal-street Church. 

Duane-street Church. 

Murray -street Church. 

Laight-street Church. 

Seventh, in Broome-street. 

Allen-street Church. 

Eighth, in Christopher-street. 

Spring-street Church. 

Brainerd, in Rivington-street, 

Associate Reformed, in Franklin-street. 

Bowery, in Bowery. 

Central, in Broome-street. 

Branch of Central, in Second Avenue, 

Scotch Reformed, in Waverly-Place. 

West, in Curmiue-street. 



222 

Congregational, in Chatham-street. 

Thompson-street Church. 

Fourth Free, in Madison-street. 

Seventh Free, in Grand-street. 

Madison, in Madison-street. 

Eighth Avenue, in Seventeenth-street 

Manhattan Island, in Fourth-street. 

Sixth Free, (Tabernacle,) in Broadway. 

Vill.ige, in Jane-street. 

New, in Sixth Avenue. 

Bleecker-street Church. 

Mercer-street Church. 

Providence Chapel, Thompson-street. 



UNITARIAN, 

First Church, in Chamber-street. 
Second Church, (new,) Broadway. 



UNIVERSALIST. 

First Church, in Orchard-street. 
Second Church, Bleecker-street. 



WELCH. 

Baptists, in Dominick-street. 
Presbyterians, in Broonie-street. 
West Baptist, in Duane-street. 

Congregation Primitive Christians, in Canal-street. 

Reformed French Church. 

[Total 150. 

H 15^89 " 




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